LIBRARY 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

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ORIGIN  AND  GOVERNMENT 


or 


THE  DISTRICT  OF  COLUMBIA 


BY 

WILLIAM  TINDALL 


Printed  for  use  of  the  Committee  on  the  District  of 
Columbia,  House  of  Representatives 


^     OF  THE 

f    UNIVERSITY  ) 

OF 


WASHINGTON 

GOVERNMENT   PRINTING  OFFICE 
1909 


PEEFACE. 


The  distinctive  object  of  this  compilation  is ,  to  present  in  chrono- 
logical order  the  essential  features  of  the  principal  legislative  and 
official  measures  affecting  the  origin,  establishment,  and  local  govern- 
ment of  the  permanent  seat  of  government  of  the  United  States,  but  a 
number  of  historical  facts  of  general  interest  and  not  strictly  within 
that  category  have  been  included. 

It  is  arranged  in  two  parts,  the  first  of  which  embraces  the  period 
prior  to  the  creation  of  the  present  form  of  government  for  the  Dis- 
trict; the  other  pertains  to  the  form  of  government  now  in  vogue. 

Several  of  the  statutes  mentioned  in  the  pamphlet  are  appended,  but 
most  of  them  are  only  cited  by  the  number  and  page  of  the  statute  at 
large  in  which  they  are  respectively  published.  The  page  references, 
which  frequently  occur  in  this  work,  relate  to  the  folios  in  the 
appendices:  L.  A.  to  Legislative  Assembly  laws,  and  \7.  D.  to  Webb's 
Digest  of  the  laws  of  the  city  of  Washington. 

WILLIAM  TINDALL. 


188126 


ORIGIN  AND  GOVERNMENT  OF  THE  DISTRICT  OF  COLUMBIA. 


The  District  of  Columbia  is  the  permanent  seat  of  the  Government 
of  the  United  States  of  America  (p.  81). 

LOCATION   AND   TOPOGRAPHY. 

It  is  situated  on  the  left  or  eastern  bank  of  the  Potomac  River,  106 
miles  from  its  entrance  into  Chesapeake  Bay  and  about  185  miles,  via 
that  river  and  bay,  from  the  Atlantic  Ocean. 

The  center  of  the  District,  as  originally  established,  is  in  longitude 
77°  02'  27.745"  west  of  Greenwich;  in  north  latitude  38°  53'  34.915", 
and  in  the  vicinity  of  Seventeenth  and  C  streets  N  W. ,  in  square  south 
of  square  No.  173,  in  the  city  of  Washington;  but,  as  a  consequence 
of  the  retrocession  to  Virginia  of  the  portion  of  the  District  derived 
from  that  State,  the  original  center  point  is  now  nearly  on  the  south- 
western border,  although  it  is  still  approximately  midway  between  the 
eastern  and  western  extremes.  It  is  1,305  feet  north  and  1,579  feet 
west  of  the  Washington  Monument. 

The  District  consists  topographically  of  an  urban  section,  named 
"the  city  of  Washington, "and of  a  suburban  and  agricultural  section, 
which  contains  a  number  of  unincorporated  villages.  It  embraces  an 
area  of  69.245  square  miles,  60.01  square  miles  of  which  are  land.  Its 
surface  is  generally  irregular  and  undulating,  rising  from  the  level  of 
mean  low  tide  in  the  contiguous  Potomac  River  to  an  elevation  of  420 
feet  at  the  highest  point,  which  is  about  a  half  mile  southeastwardly 
from  the  middle  of  its  northwestern  boundary. 

The  main  branch  of  the  Potomac  River  forms  the  southwestern 
boundary.  It  is  joined  from  the  east,  about  3  miles  north  of  the 
southern  apex  of  the  District,  by  the  Anacostia  River,  or  Eastern 
Branch,  which  flows  through  the  District  in  a  southwesterly  course  to 
that  point. 

The  navigation  of  the  Potomac  for  vessels  of  commerce  practically 
terminates  at  the  Aqueduct  Bridge,  about  3  miles  from  its  junction 
with  the  Anacostia;  the  like  navigation  of  the  Anacostia  stops  at  the 
Navy -Yard  Bridge,  about  2  miles  above  its  junction  with  the  Potomac. 

5 


6  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

AUTHORITY   FOR   ITS   ESTABLISHMENT. 

The  District  of  Columbia  was  established  as  the  seat  of  government 
of  the  United  States  by  proceedings  taken  under  authority  and  direc- 
tion of  the  acts  of  Congress  approved  July  16,  1790,  entitled  "An  act 
for  establishing  the  temporary  and  permanent  seat  of  the  Government 
of  the  United  States"  (1  Stats.,  130)  (pp.  72,  75,  and  81),  and  the  act  of 
March  3,  1791,  entitled  "An  act  to  amend  4An  act  for  establishing  the 
temporary  and  permanent  seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United 
States'"  (1  Stats.,  214)  (p.  84).  Those  acts  were  passed  pursuant  to 
the  following  provision  contained  in  the  eighth  section  of  the  first 
article  of  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States,  enumerating  the 
powers  of  Congress,  viz: 

To  exercise  exclusive  legislation,  in  all  cases  whatsoever,  over  such  district  (not 
exceeding  10  miles  square)  as  may,  by  cession  of  particular  States,  and  the  accept- 
ance of  Congress,  become  the  seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States,  and  to 
exercise  like  authority  over  all  places  purchased  by  the  consent  of  the  legislature  of 
the  State  in  which  the  same  shall  be,  for  the  erection  of  forts,  magazines,  arsenals, 
dockyards,  and  other  needful  buildings. 

An  abstract  of  the  Congressional  proceedings  prior  to  the  passage 
of  said  acts,  on  the  subject  of  locating  the  seat  of  government,  is 
contained  in  Appendix  1  (p.  30). 

The  right  to  exercise  exclusive  authority  at  the  seat  of  government 
was  conferred  upon  Congress  to  enable  it  to  provide  for  the  conven- 
ience and  protection  of  the  several  agencies  of  government  there  in 
a  manner  compatible  with  the  needs  and  dignity  of  the  nation.  Among 
the  considerations  which  led  to  the  investiture  of  Congress  with  such 
absolute  jurisdiction  were  the  facts  that  in  June,  1783,  the  Continental 
Congress  removed  from  Philadelphia  in  consequence  of  a  hostile  demon- 
station  which  was  made  toward  it  by  a  body  of  soldiers  of  the  Revo- 
lutionary Army,  impatient  at  the  long  neglect  to  pay  them  for  their 
services,  and  the  admission  of  the  authorities  of  that  city  and  of  the 
State  of  Pennsylvania  that  they  were  unable  to  protect  it  from  the 
threatened  intimidation  (p.  31). 

With  reference  to  this  grant  of  exclusive  legislation,  Mr.  Harper, 
on  December  31,  1800,  made  the  following  statement  in  Congress  in 
reply  to  an  observation  that  it  was  not  necessary  for  Congress  to 
legislate  for  the  government  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  as  the  people 
of  the  District  had  lived  happily  for  one  hundred  years  under  their 
respective  State  governments: 

But  the  provision  of  the  Constitution  on  this  subject  had  not  been  made  with  this 
view.  It  was  made  to  bestow  dignity  and  independence  on  the  Government  of  the 
Union.  It  was  to  protect  it  from  such  outrages  as  had  occurred  when  it  was  differ- 
ently situated,  when  it  was  without  competent  legislative,  executive,  and  judicial 
power  to  insure  to  itself  respect.  While  the  Government  was  under  the  guardian- 
ship of  State  laws,  those  laws  might  be  inadequate  to  its  protection,  or  there  might 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  7 

exist  a  spirit  hostile  to  the  General  Government,  or,  at  any  rate,  indisposed  to  give  it 
proper  protection.  This  was  one  reason,  among  others,  for  the  provisions  of  the 
Constitution  confirmed  and  carried  into  effect  by  the  acts  of  Maryland  and  Virginia 
and  by  the  act  of  Congreas  (p.  76) .  See  Mr.  Madison's  views  on  same  subject  (p.  140). 

SITES   FIRST    SELECTED. 

The  Congress  of  the  Confederation  resolved  on  October  7,  1783, 
"that  buildings  for  the  use  of  Congress  be  erected  on  or  near  the 
banks  of  the  Delaware  or  of  the  Potomac,  provided  a  suitable  district 
can  be  procured  on  one  of  the  rivers  as  aforesaid  for  a  Federal  town, 
and  the  right  of  soil  and  an  exclusive  or  such  other  jurisdiction  as 
Congress  may  direct  shall  be  vested  in  the  United  States."  Also, 
"  that  the  place  on  the  Delaware  for  erecting  buildings  for  the  use  of 
Congress  be  near  the  falls  "  (p.  39). 

On  the  21st  of  that  month  it  was  resolved  "that  buildings  be  like- 
wise erected  for  the  use  of  Congress  at  or  near  the  lower  falls  of  the 
Potomac  or  Georgetown  "  (p.  42). 

An  appropriation  of  $100,000  was  made  on  December  20,  1784,. to 
erect  the  necessary  buildings  (p.  47). 

On  December  23,  1784,  Congress  ordained  that  "three  commission- 
ers be  appointed  with  full  powers  to  lay  out  a  district  of  not  less  than 
2  nor  exceeding  3  miles  square,  on  the  banks  of  either  side  of  the  Dela- 
ware, not  more  than  8  miles  above  or  below  the  falls  thereof,  for  a 
Federal  town,"  etc.,  and  on  February  10  and  11  appointed  Philip 
Schuyler,  Philemon  Dickinson,  and  Robert  Morris  as  such  commis- 
sioners. Philip  Schuyler  declined  to  accept  the  office,  and  on  March 
16  John  Brown  was  appointed  in  his  stead;  but  the  proceedings  of 
Congress  do  not  show  that  any  further  action  was  taken  under  that 
ordinance  (pp.  47,  48,  49,  50). 

None  of  these  measures  were  carried  into  effect,  but  the  whole  sub- 
ject of  providing  a  seat  of  government  was  deferred  by  a  resolution  of 
August  6,  1788,  to  the  consideration  of  the  Congress  provided  for  by 
the  Constitution  (p.  55). 

In  September,  1789,  the  Senate  and  House  passed,  on  different  days, 
a  bill  to  locate  the  seat  of  government  at  Germantown,  Pa. ;  but  its 
final  consideration  on  amendments  having  been  deferred  until  the  next 
session  it  never  became  a  law  (pp.  66  and  67). 

SELECTION    OF   THE    PRESENT   SITE. 

The  requisite  area  for  the  present  site  of  the  seat  of  government 
was  offered  to  Congress  by  the  States  of  Maryland  and  Virginia.  The 
former  State,  by  an  act  of  its  general  assembly  passed  December  23, 
1788,  directed  its  Representatives  in  the  House  of  Representatives  of 
the  Congress  of  the  United  States  to  cede  to  the  Congress  of  the 
United  States  any  district  in  said  State  not  exceeding  10  miles  square 


8  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

which  the  Congress  might  fix  upon  and  accept  for  the  seat  of  govern- 
ment (p.  82).  The  latter  State,  by  an  act  of  its  general  assembly 
passed  December  3,  1789,  ceded  a  like  tract  or  any  lesser  quantity  of 
Virginia  territory  for  the  same  purpose  (p.  82). 

A  tract  10  miles  square  on  the  banks  of  the  Delaware  was  also  offered 
by  certain  citizens  of  Pennsylvania  and  New  Jersey  as  a  site  for  the 
seat  of  government  (p.  64). 

The  general  assembly  of  Maryland,  by  an  act  passed  December  19, 
1791,  formally  ratified  the  cession  provided  for  in  its  act  of  December 
23,  1788  (p.  96). 

Maryland  also  gave  $72,000  (p.  101),  and  loaned  $250,000  more  for 
the  erection  of  public  buildings  in  the  District  for  the  use  of  the  Gen- 
eral Government.  Virginia  made  a  grant  of  $120,000  for  the  same 
purpose  in  case  of  the  acceptance  by  Congress  of  the  cession  of  the  site 
offered  by  it  for  the  seat  of  government  (p.  83). 

The  southern  limit  of  the  area  of  selection  for  the  site  of  the  Dis- 
trict was  placed  by  the  act  of  March  3,  1791,  at  Hunting  Creek,  an 
estuary  of  the  Potomac  River  which  enters  that  river  from  the  west 
immediately  below  Alexandria,  Va.  The  northern  limit  was  fixed  by 
the  act  of  July  16,  1790,  at  a  small  stream  named  "  Connogochegue 
Creek,"  which  enters  the  Potomac  River  from  the  north,  at  Williams- 
port,  Md. ,  about  80  miles  above  the  southern  limit. 

In  anticipation  of  the  enactment  of  the  statute  of  March  3,  1791,  and 
to  advance  the  work  of  locating  the  boundary  lines  of  the  District  as 
far  as  possible  pending  its  consideration,  a  tentative  boundary  of  the 
District  was  laid  out  by  Commissioners  Thomas  Johnson,  David  Stu- 
art, and  Daniel  Carroll,  who  were  appointed  by  President  Washington 
on  January  22,  1791  (p.  84),  pursuant  to  the  act  of  July  16,  1790,  and 
directed  by  a  Presidential  proclamation  dated  January  24, 1791  (p.  89),  to 
proceed  forthwith  to  make  a  preliminary  survey,  or,  in  the  President's 
words,  to  run  "lines  of  experiment,"  which  were  substantially  in 
accord  with  the  lines  subsequently  adopted  as  hereinafter  mentioned. 

Mr.  Carroll  was  a  Delegate  from  Maryland,  in  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives of  the  United  States,  when  this  appointment  was  first  made, 
and  declined  to  accept  it  while  a  member  of  Congress.  Consequently 
only  two  Commissioners  were  on  duty  until  March  4,  1791,  when  Mr. 
Carroll's  Congressional  term  expired  and  he  accepted  a  new  commis- 
sion which  the  President  sent  to  him. 

The  point  of  beginning  for  the  lines  of  experiment  was  found  by 
"running  from  the  court-house  of  Alexandria,  in  Virginia,  due  south- 
west half  a  mile,  and  thence  a  due  southeast  course,  till  it  shall  strike 
Hunting  Creek"  (p.  89). 

The  area  of  selection  having  been  enlarged  by  the  act  of  March  3, 
1791,  the  site  of  the  District  was  finally  located,  partly  in  Prince 
George  and  Montgomery  counties,  in  the  State  of  Maryland,  and 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 


9 


partly  in  Fairfax  County,  in  the  State  of  Virginia,  by  proclamation  of 
President  George  Washington,  March  30,  1791,  within  the  following 
bounds: 

Beginning  at  Jones  Point,  being  the  upper  cape  of  Hunting  Creek,  in  Virginia,  and 
at  an  angle  in  the  outset  of  45  degrees  west  of  the  north,  and  running  in  a  direct  line 
10  miles  for  the  first  line;  then  beginning  again  at  the  same  Jones  Point,  and  run- 
ning another  direct  line  at  a  right  anglo  with  the  first  across  the  Potomac  10  miles 


Southwestern  side,  10  miles  230.6  feet. 
Northeastern  side,  10  miles  263. 1  feet. 
Southeastern  side,  10  miles  70.5  feet. 
Northwestern  side,  10  miles  63  feet. 

for  the  second  line;  then  from  the  terminations  of  the  said  first  and  second  lines 
running  two  other  direct  lines  of  10  miles  each,  the  one  crossing  the  Eastern  Branch 
aforesaid  and  the  other  the  Potomac,  and  meeting  each  other  in  a  point  (p.  90). 


10  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

The  corner  stone  which  indicates  the  point  of  beginning  in  the 
boundaries  of  the  District  was  laid  at  Jones  Point,  on  the  Virginia 
shore,  with  Masonic  ceremonies,  April  15,  1791,  and  now  forms  part 
of  the  foundation  of  the  retaining  wall  of  the  terrace  or  garden  around 
the  Jones  Point  light-house.  It  is  under  the  gateway,  and  almost 
directly  south  of  the  center  of  the  light-house,  on  the  north  bank  of 
Hunting  Creek. 

A  survey  of  the  District,  which  was  commenced  in  1881  under  the 
direction  of  the  United  States  Coast  and  Geodetic  Survey,  demon- 
strated that  the  boundary  lines  as  laid  down  by  the  commissioners  in 
1790  are  incorrect.  The  northern  point  is  116  feet  west  of  the  merid- 
ian running  through  the  southern  corner,  and  each  of  the  sides  exceeds 
10  miles  in  length. a  (See  cut,  page  9.) 

The  land  boundary  of  the  District  of  Columbia  is  marked  on  the 
ground  by  sandstone  mileposts  1  foot  square  and  2  feet  high,  numbered 
from  1  to  9,  from  right  to  left.  They  bear  on  the  side  facing  the  Dis 
trict  the  legend,  "Jurisdiction  of  the  United  States,"  and  the  number 
of  miles  they  respectively  are  from  the  corner  at  which  the  numerical 
series  to  which  they  belong  begins.  On  the  opposite  side  they  bear 
the  inscription  "Maryland,"  on  the  third  side  the  year  1792,  and  on 
the  fourth  side  the  variations  of  the  compass. 

TOWNS   IN   THE   DISTRICT   AT   TIME   OF    CESSION. 

At  the  time  the  District  was  established  three  towns  existed  in  the 
portion  of  it  which  was  ceded  from  Maryland,  namely.  Georgetown, 
Carrollsburg,  and  Hamburg.  The  last  two,  although  they  were  laid 
out  on  the  records,  had  no  corporeal  existence.  Carrollsburg  was  the 
name  of  a  tract  on  the  northern  bank  of  the  Eastern  Branch  east  of 
Arsenal  Point,  containing  160  acres,  subdivided  into  268  lots,  under  a 
deed  of  trust  recorded  at  "  Marlborough,"  Md.,  November  2,  1770. 
Hamburg,  sometimes  called  Funkstown,  fronted  on  the  Potomac  in 
the  neighborhood  of  Twenty-fourth  street  west,  and  contained  120 
acres,  subdivided  into  287  lots,  by  its  owner,  Jacob  Funk,  by  a  plat  also 
recorded  at  "Marlborough,"  Md.,  October  28,  1771  (p.  113). 

ACCEPTANCE    OF   THE    SITE. 

Section  3  of  the  aforesaid  act  of  July  16,  1790,  prescribes,  among 
other  things,  that  "the  District  so  denned,  limited,  and  located  shall 
T>e  deemed  the  District  accepted  by  this  act  for  the  permanent  seat  of 
the  Government  of  the  United  States."  Section  1  of  the  same  act 

« An  account  of  this  and  other  surveys  and  maps  of  the  District  is  contained  in  a 
paper  presented  before  the  National  Geographic  Society  by  Marcus  Baker,  March  23, 
1894,  and  published  in  Volume  VI  of  the  National  Geographic  Magazine. 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DESTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  11 

contain*  a  substantially  similar  provision.  Both  of  those  provisions 
are  adopted  by  the  act  of  March  3,  1791,  as  applicable  to  the  site 
located  under  the  enlarged  purview  of  that  act. 

NAMING   THE    DISTRICT. 

The  first  official  mention  of  the  district  by  name  is  in  a  letter  of  the 
original  Commissioners  dated  September  9,  1791,  in  which  they  state: 
"We  have  agreed  that  the  Federal  district  shall  be  called  the  Territory 
of  Columbia,"  etc.  (p.  94).  They  had  no  specific  authority  of  law  to 
name  it. 

The  first  mention  of  the  name  "District  of  Columbia"  in  an  act  of 
Congress  is  in  the  title,  but  not  in  the  body,  of  "An  act  authorizing  a 
loan  for  the  use  of  the  city  of  Washington,  in  the  District  of  Columbia, 
and  for  other  purposes  therein  mentioned,"  approved  May  6,  1796; 
but  a  previous  statutory  use  of  the  name  appears  in  the  fourth  section 
of  the  act  of  the  Maryland  legislature,  approved  in  November,  1793, 
entitled  "A  further  supplement  to  the  act  concerning  the  Territory  of 
Columbia  and  the  city  of  Washington"  (p.  114).  The  seat  of  govern- 
ment is  mentioned  in  at  least  one  act  of  Congress  as  the  Territory  of 
Columbia  and  the  District  of  Columbia,  indiscriminately.  (2  Stats., 
193  and  194.) 

Although  the  territory  at  the  seat  of  government  is  referred  to  in 
various  statutes  as  the  District  of  Columbia,  it  was  not  until  February 
21,  1871,  that  Congress  directly  legislated  on  the  subject  of  naming  it, 
which  it  did  by  the  following  clause  in  the  act  of  that  date,  entitled 
"An  act  to  provide  a  government  for  the  District  of  Columbia:" 

That  all  that  part  of  the  territory  of  the  United  States  included  uithin  the  limits  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  be,  and  the  same  is  hereby,  created  into  a  government  by  the 
name  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  by  which  name  it  is  hereby  constituted  a  body 
corporate  for  municipal  purposes.  (16  Stats.,  419.) 

But  this  act  omitted  to  define  the  limits  to  which  it  referred. 

Congress,  obviously  in  doubt  as  to  the  sufficiency  of  that  action, 
again  legislated  on  the  subject,  in  the  act  entitled  ' '  An  act  providing 
a  permanent  form  of  government  for  the  District  of  Columbia," 
approved  June  11,  1878,  as  follows: 

That  all  the  territory  which  was  ceded  by  tJie  State  of  Maryland  to  the  Congress  of 
the  United  States,  for  the  permanent  seat  of  the  government  of  the  United  States, 
shall  continue  to  be  designated  as  the  District  of  Columbia.  (20  Stats.,  102. ) 

In  this  latter  act  Congress  definitely  indicates  the  territory  it  names. 

ASSUMPTION  OF   LEGAL  JURISDICTION   BY   THE    UNITED   STATES. 

The  acts  of  cession  of  Virginia  and  Maryland  provided  that  the  juris- 
diction of  the  laws  of  those  States,  respectively,  ov.er  the  persons  and 


12  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

property  of  individuals  residing  within  the  limits  of  the  sections  so 
ceded  should  not  cease  or  determine  until  Congress,  having  accepted 
such  cession,  should  by  law  provide  for  the  government  thereof  under  its 
jurisdiction  in  the  manner  provided  in  the  eighth  section  of  the  first 
article  of  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States.  Section  1  of  the  act  of 
Congress  approved  July  16, 1790,  contains  a  corresponding  provision. 
(See  also  act  of  Feb.  27,  1801,  2  Stat.,  104.) 

The  authority  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States  over  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia  "in  full  and  absolute  right  and  exclusive  jurisdiction 
as  well  of  soil  as  of  persons  residing  or  to  reside  thereon,  became 
vested  on  the  first  Monday  of  December,  1800. "  (Cranch's  Circuit 
Reports,  Vol.  1,  pp.  15  to  21,  (p.  102.) 

TRANSFER   OF    THE    SEAT    OF     GOVERNMENT     TO    THE    DISTRICT    OF 

COLUMBIA. 

The  date  of  the  transfer  of  the  seat  of  government  to  the  District 
of  Columbia  was  fixed  b}^  the  first  paragraph  of  section  6  of  the  act  of 
July  16,  1790,  as  follows: 

"And  fie  it  enacted,  That  or.  the  said  first  Monday  in  December,  in 
the  year  one  thousand  eight  hundred,  the  seat  of  the  Government  of 
the  United  States  shall,  by  virtue  of  this  act,  be  transferred  to  the 
District  and  place  aforesaid;"  the  place  referred  to  being  the  portion 
of  the  District  selected  for  the  Federal  city. 

An  act  of  Congress  approved  April  24, 1800  (2  Stats.,  55),  authorized 
the  President  of  the  United  States  to  direct  the  removal  of  the  various 
Executive  Departments  to  the  city  of  Washington  at  any  time  after 
the  adjournment  of  the  first  session  of  the  Sixth  Congress  and  before 
the  time  fixed  by  the  act  of  July  16,  1790,  for  the  transfer  of  the  seat 
of  government  to  that  place. 

The  date  of  the  first  meeting  of  Congress  in  the  District  was  fixed 
by  an  act  passed  May  13,  1800  (p.  102),  for  the  17th  day,  or  the  third 
Monday,  in  November,  1800;  but  it  actually  met  for  the  first  time  in 
the  District  on  November  21,  which  was  the  first  day  of  the  session 
when  a  quorum  of  both  Houses  was  present.  The  meeting  was  in 
the  north  wing  of  the  Capitol,  then  the  only  completed  part  of  the 
building.  A  quorum  of  the  House  of  Representatives  was  present  on 
the  18th  of  that  month. 

The  President  arrived  in  Georgetown  on  June  3, 1800,  and  in  Wash- 
ington the  next  day. 

The  personnel  and  records  of  the  several  Departments  were  trans- 
ferred from  Philadelphia  to  Washington  about  the  same  time,  at  an 
expense  of  $32,872.34,  and  those  Departments  were  fully  removed  to 
the  latter  city  by  June  16, 1801.  (Senate  Doc.  No.  238,  second  session, 
Fifty-fifth  Congress.) 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  13 

The  Supreme  Court  held  its  first  session  in  Washington  on  the  2d 
of  the  ensuing  February;  but  the  first  session  at  which  a  quorum  of 
that  court  was  present  was  held  on  the  4th  of  that  month. 

PREVIOUS   MEETING   PLACES   OF   CONGRESS. 

The  Congress  of  the  Revolution  first  met  in  Philadelphia,  Pa.,  on 
September  5,  1774,  and  remained  there  until  Wednesday,  December 
12,  1776,  when  it  adjourned  to  Baltimore,  Md.,  in  consequence  of  the 
approach  of  the  British  army  (p.  30). 

It  met  in  Baltimore  Friday,  December  20, 1776,  and  remained  there 
until  February  27,  1777,  when  it  adjourned  to  Philadelphia,  where  it 
met  on  the  4th  of  the  next  March  and  adjourned  from  day  to  day  until 
the  12th  of  that  month.  (Ib.) 

On  the  18th  of  September,  1777,  military  necessity  again  led  to  its 
removal  from  Philadelphia.  It  thereupon  adjourned  to  Lancaster,  Pa. , 
where  it  met  on  Saturday  the  27th  of  that  month,  and  on  the  same 
day  adjourned  to  meet  at  Yorktown  in  the  same  State,  at  which  place 
it  assembled  on  Tuesday  the  30th  of  the  same  month.  (Ib.) 

It  remained  in  York  until  Saturday,  June  27,  1778,  when,  in  view 
of  the  evacuation  of  Philadelphia  by  the  British,  it  adjourned  to  that 
city,  where  it  held  its  next  session  on  Thursday,  July  2,  1778.  (Ib.) 

It  remained  in  Philadelphia  until  June  21,  1783,  when  in  conse- 
quence of  the  menacing  demonstration  toward  it  by  the  unpaid  sol- 
diers of  the  Revolutionary  Army,  it  adjourned  to  meet  either  at  Trenton 
or  Princeton,  N.  J.,  as  the  President  might  direct  (p.  31.) 

Upon  the  summons  of  the  President  it  met  at  Princeton  on  the  30th 
of  June  and  continued  to  hold  its  sessions  there  until  November  4, 
1783  (pp.  31,  43). 

On  November  26,  1783,  it  met  in  Annapolis,  Md. ,  where  it  remained 
until  June  3,  1784  (p.  43). 

It  next  met  in  Trenton,  N.  J.,  from  November  1,  1784,  until  Decem- 
ber 24,  1784,  when  it  adjourned  to  meet  in  the  city  of  New  York 
(p.  49). 

It  met  in  New  York  City  on  January  11,  1785,  and  continued  to 
meet  there  until  March  4, 1789,  when  it  was  succeeded  by  the  Congress 
provided  for  in  the  Constitution  (p.  57). 

The  Congress  provided  for  by  the  Constitution  first  met  in  New 
York  City.  The  first  Wednesday,  which  was  the  4th  day  of  March, 
1789,  was  the  day  appointed  by  the  resolution  of  September  12,  1788 
(p.  57),  for  "commencing  proceedings"  by  the  Congress  provided  for 
by  the  Constitution,  and  several  members  of  each  House  were  present 
on  that  day,  but  no  quorum  appeared  in  the  House  of  Representatives 
until  the  1st  of  April,  1789,  nor  in  the  Senate  until  the  6th  of  that 
month.  On  December  6,  1790,  Congress  removed  to  Philadelphia 


14  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

which  was  chosen  by  the  act  of  July  16,  1790,  as  the  temporary  seat 
of  government  until  its  removal  to  the  District  of  Columbia. 

AUTHORITY   FOR  TEMPORARY   REMOVAL  OF  THE    SEAT  OF   GOVERNMENT. 

Section  6  of  "An  act  respecting  quarantines  and  health  laws," 
approved  February  25,  1799,  provides  that — 

In  case  of  the  prevalence  of  a  contagious  or  epidemical  disease  at  the  seat  of  gov- 
ernment it  shall  be  lawful  for  the  President  of  the  United  States  to  permit  and  direct 
the  removal  of  any  or  all  the  public  offices  to  such  other  places  as,  in  his  discretion, 
shall  be  deemed  most  safe  and  convenient  for  conducting  the  public  business. 
(1  Stats.,  620.) 

This  legislation  originated  in  a  Senate  amendment,  and  was  a  sequela 
of  the  yellow-fever  epidemics  which  scourged  the  city  of  Philadelphia 
in  1793  and  in  1798,  and  so  severely  during  the  latter  year  that  the 
President  of  the  United  States  and  the  offices  of  the  General  and  State 
governments  temporarily  removed  to  Germantown,  Pa.,  to  avoid  the 
pestilence.  (See  Watson's  Annals  of  Philadelphia,  vol.  2,  pp.  41,  63, 
and  94.) 

COUNTY    SUBDIVISION. 

The  District  was  divided  into  two  counties  by  an  act  of  Congress 
approved  February  27,  1801.  The  portion  derived  from  Virginia  was 
named  the  county  of  Alexandria,  and  the  portion  from  Maryland, 
including  the  islands  in  the  Potomac  River  in  said  District,  was  named 
the  county  of  Washington.  (2  Stats.,  105.) 

RETROCESSION   OF   ALEXANDRIA   COUNTY. 

Pursuant  to  an  act  of  Congress  of  July  9, 1846  (9  Stats.,  35),  and  with 
the  assent  of  the  people  of  the  county  and  town  of  Alexandria,  at  an 
election  on  the  first  and  second  days  of  September,  1846,  by  a  viva 
voce  vote  of  763  for  retrocession  and  222  against  it,  President  Polk, 
by  proclamation  of  September  7,  1846,  gave  notice  that  the  portion 
derived  from  the  State  of  Virginia  was  re-ceded  to  that  State.  The 
District  was  thereby  reduced  to  its  present  area.  (9  Stats.,  1000.) 

The  action  of  Congress  and  the  President  was  based  upon  petitions 
of  the  people  of  the  town  and  county  of  Alexandria,  Va.,  set  forth  in 
House  of  Representatives  Report  No.  325,  of  the  first  session  of  the 
Twenty-ninth  Congress,  dated  February  25,  1846  (p.  102). 

BOUNDARY    BETWEEN    THE    DISTRICT   OF   COLUMBIA    AND   THE    STATE    OF 

VIRGINIA. 

The  boundary  line  between  the  District  of  Columbia  and  the  State 
of  Virginia  is  held  by  several  judicial  decisions  to  be  high-water 
mark  on  the  Virginia  shore  of  the  Potomac  River,  and  that  the  act  of 
Congress  of  March  3,  1879,  does  not  apply  to  the  portion  of  the 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT   OF    COLUMBIA. 


15 


Potomac  River  abutting  the  District  of  Columbia.  (See  Evans  v. 
U.  S.,  31  Appeals,  D.  C.,  p.  544;  and  Morris  v.  U.  S.,  174  U.  S.,  p.  225.) 
The  act  of  February  27, 1801  (2  Stats.,  103),  dividing  the  District  of 
Columbia  into  two  counties,  prescribes  "and  the  said  river  in  its  whole 
course  through  said  District  shall  be  taken  and  deemed  to  all  intents 
and  purposes  to  be  within  both  of  said  counties,"  so  that  the  whole 
breadth  of  the  river  proper  became  a  part  of  the  two  counties,  in  com- 
mon for  all  purposes. 

CENSUS. 

The  population  of  the  District  from  1790  to  1908  has  been  as  follows: 


Date. 

Washing- 
ton. 

.George- 
town. 

Wash- 
ington 
County 
(subur- 
ban). 

Alexan- 
dria city. 

Alexan- 
dria 
.County 
(subur- 
ban). 

Total. 

Colored 
included 
in  total. 

Slaves 
included 
in  col- 
ored. 

1790                 

2,746 

2,746 

1800  

3,210 

2,993 

1,941 

4,971 

978 

14,093 

2.472 

2  072 

1810  

8,208 

4,948 

2,315 

7,227 

1,325 

24,023 

5.126 

3  554 

1820  

13,  247 

7,360 

2,726 

8,218 

1,488 

33,039 

7,278 

4  520 

1S30  

18,827 

8,441 

2,993 

8,263 

1,  310 

39,834 

9,110 

4  505 

J840                     

23,364 

7,312 

3,069 

8,459 

1,508 

43  712 

9  819 

3  320 

I860  

40,001 

8,366 

3,320 

(o) 

(a) 

51,687 

13  746 

3  687 

I860  

61,122 

8,733 

5,225 

75,080 

14,216 

3  185 

1870                    

109,  199 

11,384 

11,117 

131  ,  700 

43  403 

fM 

1878  

131,  947 

11,571 

16,633 

160,  051 

53  624 

1880  

147,293 

12,578 

17,  753 

177,  624 

59,  402 

1885  

173,606 

14,  322 

c  16,  531 

203,  459 

67  188 

1888  

179,  448 

14,345 

24,364 

218,  157 

72  622 

1890  

188,  932 

14,  046 

27,414 

230,392 

75,  572 

1894            

217,  617 

15,  747 

37,  155 

270  519 

87  034 

1897  

220,  698 

15,809 

41,195 

277,  782 

88  325 

1900  

232,  745 

(d) 

45,973 

278,  718 

87,186 

1905  .          

259,  100 

323  123 

95  695 

1906       

326,  435 

95  018 

1907  

329,  591 

96,188 

1908  

339,  403 

97,483 

o  Alexandria  city  and  county  re-ceded  to  Virginia  in  1846. 

6  See  under  head  of  "Abolition  of  African  slavery,"  infra.  The  decrease  in  population  of  Alexan- 
dria County  in  1830  was  due  to  absence  of  slaves  and  other  residents  thereof  employed  in  construct- 
ing the  Chesapeake  and  Ohio  Canal. 

cThe  item  of  15,531  for  suburban  census  of  1885,  although  apparently  erroneous,  agrees  with  the 
official  returns. 

d  Georgetown  became  a  part  of  Washington  February  11, 1895,  pursuant  to  an  act  of  Congress  of  that 
date.  The  population  of  that  part  of  Washington  according  to  the  census  of  1900  was  14,549. 

The  census  for  1800  and  each  subsequent  decade  was  taken  by  the  United  States;  for  the  year  1878 
by  the  board  of  assessors,  and  for  the  years  1885, 1888, 1894, 1897, 1905, 1906, 1907,  and  1908  by  the  Metro- 
politan police  department. 

ABOLITION  OF  AFRICAN   SLAVERY. 

African  slavery  in  the  District  of  Columbia  was  abolished  April  16, 
1862,  by  the  act  of  Congress  approved  on  that  date,  and  entitled  "An 
act  for  the  release  of  certain  persons  held  to  service  or  labor  in  the 
District  of  Columbia"  (11  Stats.,  376),  which  provided,  among  other 
things: 

That  all  persons  held  to  service  or  labor  within  the  District  of  Columbia  by  reason 
of  African  descent  are  hereby  discharged  and  freed  of  and  from  all  claim  to  such 
service  or  labor;  and  from  and  after  the  passage  of  this  act  neither  slavery  nor  invol- 
untary servitude,  except  for  crime,  whereof  the  party  shall  be  duly  convicted,  shall 
hereafter  exist  in  said  District. 

This  act  also  directed  the  President  of  the  United  States  to  appoint 
three  commissioners  to  appraise  and  apportion  the  value  and  validity 
of  claims  of  "all  persons  loyal  to  the  United  States"  "for  service  or 
labor  against  persons  discharged  therefrom  by  this  act,"  "not  to 

74986—09 2 


16  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE   DISTRICT   OF    COLUMBIA. 

exceed  in  the  aggregate  an  amount  equal  to  three  hundred  dollars  for 
each  person  shown  to  have  been  so  held  by  lawful  claim."  One  mil- 
lion dollars  was  appropriated  in  the  act  to  carry  it  into  effect,  and 
$100.000  more  to  aid  in  colonizing  in  Haiti,  Liberia,  or  such  other 
country  as  the  President  might  determine,  such  free  persons  of 
African  descent  then  residing  in  the  District  as  desired  to  emigrate. 

Trade  in  slaves  in  the  District  was  by  act  of  September  20,  1850, 
prohibited  after  January  1,  1851.  (9  Stats.,  467.) 

PENAL,   DISCRIMINATION   ON   ACCOUNT   OF   COLOR   DISCONTINUED. 

Persons  of  color  were  made  subject  to  the  same  penalties  as  free 
white  persons,  and  no  other,  for  violations  of  law  on  and  after  May  21, 
1862.  (12  Stats.,  407.) 

OWNERSHIP   OF   LAND   BY   ALIENS. 

Section  6  of  the  act  of  the  State  of  Maryland  "concerning  the  Ter- 
ritory of  Columbia  and  the  city  of  Washington,"  passed  December  19, 
1791,  provides: 

That  any  foreigner  may,  by  deed  or  will  hereafter  to  be  made,  take  and  hold  lands 
within  that  part  of  the  said  Territory  which  lies  within  this  State  in  the  same  man- 
ner as  if  he  were  a  citizen  of  this  State;  and  the  same  lands  may  be  conveyed  by  him 
and  transmitted  to  and  inherited  by  his  heirs  or  relations  as  if  he  and  they  were 
citizens  of  this  State:  Provided,  That  no  foreigner  shall,  in  virtue  thereof,  be  entitled 
to  any  further  or  other  privilege  of  a  citizen. 

The  object  of  the  foregoing  legislation  was,  as  stated  in  the  pre- 
amble to  said  act,  "that  allowing  foreigners  to  hold  land  within  the 
said  Territory  will  greatly  contribute  to  the  improvement  and  popu- 
lation thereof  (p.  94)." 

This  privilege  was  substantially  modified  by  subsequent  acts  of  Con- 
gress and  is  now  governed  by  sections  396  and  397  of  the  code  of 
laws  for  the  District  of  Columbia,  as  follows: 

It  shall  be  unlawful  for  any  person  not  a  citizen  of  the  United  States  or  who  has 
not  lawfully  declared  his  intention  to  become  such  citizen,  or  for  any  corporation 
not  created  by  or  under  the  laws  of  the  United  States  or  of  some  State  or  Territory 
of  the  United  States,  to  hereafter  acquire  and  own  real  estate,  or  any  interest  therein, 
in  the  District  of  Columbia,  except  such  as  may  be  acquired  by  inheritance:  Provided, 
That  the  prohibition  of  this  section  shall  not  apply  to  cases  in  which  the  right  to 
hold  and  dispose  of  lands  in  the  United  States  is  secured  by  existing  treaties  to  the 
citizens  or  subjects  of  foreign  countries,  which  rights,  so  far  as  they  exist  by  force  of 
any  such  treaties,  shall  continue  to  exist  so  long  as  such  treaties  are  in  force,  and  no 
longer,  and  shall  not  apply  to  the  ownership  of  foreign  legations  or  the  ownership  of 
residences  by  representatives  of  foreign  governments  or  attaches  thereof. 

No  corporation  or  association  of  which  more  than  twenty  per  centum  of  the  stock  is 
or  may  be  owned  by  any  person  or  persons,  corporation  or  corporations,  association  or 
associations  not  citizens  of  the  United  States  shall  hereafter  acquire  or  own  any  real 
estate  hereafter  acquired  in  the  District  of  Columbia. 

All  property  acquired  or  held  or  owned  in  violation  of  the  provisions  of  this  chap- 
ter shall  be  forfeited  to  the  United  States. 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  17 

SUFFRAGE. 

The  right  to  vote  in  the  District  of  Columbia  for  President  of  the 
United  States  and  other  national  officers,  which  was  extant  at  the 
time  the  territory  embraced  in  the  District  was  ceded  to  Congress,  was 
exercised  by  the  qualified  voters  in  the  District  in  the  Presidential 
election  of  November,  1800.  It  remained  in  force  until  the  first  Mon- 
day in  December,  1800,  when,  as  announced  in  the  opinion  of  Justice 
Cranch,  hereinbefore  mentioned,  the  exclusive  jurisdiction  of  Congress 
over  the  District  took  effect. 

The  qualifications  of  voters  in  the  portion  derived  from  Maryland 
were  at  that  time  as  follows: 

All  free  men  above  21  years  of  age  having  a  freehold  of  50  acres  of  land  in  the 
county  in  which  they  offer  to  vote,  and  residing  therein,  and  all  free  men  having 
property  in  this  State  above  the  value  of  £30  current  money,  and  having  resided  in 
the  county  in  which  they  offer  to  vote  one  whole  year  next  preceding  the  election,  shall 
have  a  right  of  suffrage,  etc.  (Constitution  of  Maryland.) 

When  the  District  ceased  to  be  a  part  of  Maryland,  its  residents,  no 
longer  being  residents  of  any  county  of  Maryland,  consequently  lost 
the  right  to  vote  in  the  elections  of  that  State. 

The  qualification  of  voters  in  the  portion  of  the  District  derived 
from  Virginia  at  the  time  of  the  cession  was  the  possession  of  a  cer- 
tain amount  of  real  property  in  the  county  in  which  the  vote  was  cast. 
(Vol.  8,  p.  306,  Hening's  Statutes  at  Large  of  Virginia.)  When  that 
part  of  the  District  ceased  to  be  under  the  jurisdiction  of  any  county 
of  Virginia,  that  right  of  suffrage  in  the  District  accordingly  expired. 

Although  the  citizens  of  the  District  of  Columbia  ceased  to  vote  for 
national  officers  after  the  first  Monday  in  December,  1800,  they  were 
subsequently  vested  with  the  right  of  suffrage  in  municipal  matters, 
as  hereinafter  shown  under  the  head  of  "The  cities  of  Washington  and 
Georgetown,"  and  the  form  of  municipal  government  created  by  the 
act  of  Congress  of  February  21, 1871,  but  that  right  has  not  existed  in 
the  District  since  June  20,  1874,  when  the  latter  form  of  government 
was  abolished. 

FORMS   OF   LOCAL   GOVERNMENT. 

A  brief  account  of  the  several  forms  of  local  government  which  have 
been  in  operation  in  the  District  since  its  establishment  as  the  seat  of 
the  General  Government  is  hereinafter  given  under  the  heads  of  "The 
city  of  Washington,"  "Georgetown,"  "The  leAry  court,"  and  "The 
District  of  Columbia." 

THE   CITY   OF   WASHINGTON. 

LOCATION. 

The  locality  in  the  District  of  Columbia  designated  "the  city  of 
Washington"  occupies  a  peninsula  formed  by  the  main  and  eastern 
branches  of  the  Potomac  River.  It  embraces  the  Federal  city  as  laid 


18  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DI8TBICT   OF    COLUMBIA.. 

out  by  the  commissioners  appointed  in  1791  and  the  town  of  George- 
town, which  was  consolidated  with  it  February  11,  1895,  by  an  act  of 
Congress  of  that  date.  (28  Stats.,  650.) 

The  city  as  it  existed  prior  to  its  consolidation  with  former  George- 
town was  established  pursuant  to  the  provisions  of  section  3  of  the 
act  of  Congress  of  July  16,  1790,  entitled  "An  act  for  establishing 
the  temporary  and  permanent  seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United 
States"  (1  Stats.,  130),  which  provided  that  the  commissioners  ap- 
pointed under  section  2  of  said  act  to  define  the  limits  of  the  District 
of  Columbia  should  have  the  power  *  to  purchase  or  accept  such 
quantity  of  land  on  the  eastern  side  of  said  (Potomac)  river,  within 
the  said  District,  as  the  President  shall  deem  proper  for  the  use  of 
the  United  States,  and  according  to  such  plans  as  the  President  shall 
approve;  the  said  commissioners,  or  any  two  of  them,  shall,  prior  to 
the  first  Monday  in  December,  in  the  year  one  thousand  eight  hun- 
dred, provide  suitable  buildings  for  the  accommodation  of  Congress, 
and  of  the  President,  and  for  the  public  offices  of  the  Government  of 
the  United  States." 

The  city  was  located  in  the  portion  of  the  District  ceded  by  Mary- 
land conformably  to  the  requirement  of  the  act  of  March  3,  1791  (1 
Stats.,  214),  amendatory  of  the  act  of  July  16,  1790,  "that  nothing 
herein  contained  shall  authorize  the  erection  of  the  public  buildings 
otherwise  than  on  the  Maryland  side  of  the  river  Potomac." 

BOUNDARIES   OF   THE   CITY   OF   WASHINGTON. 

The  boundaries  of  the  city  of  Washington  were  never  specifically 
defined  by  acts  of  Congress,  but  those  of  the  city  as  it  existed  prior 
to  the  annexation  of  Georgetown  were  incidentally  fixed  by  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States,  pursuant  to  the  discretion  vested  in  him  by 
section  3  of  the  act  of  July  16,  1790,  which  empowered  the  commis- 
sioners appointed  under  that  act  to  purchase  or  accept  land  and  pro- 
vide buildings  for  the  accommodation  of  Congress,  the  President,  and 
the  public  offices,  as  the  President  might  deem  proper.  In  the  exer- 
cise of  that  discretion  the  President  approved  of  the  plan  embracing 
the  land  deeded  by  the  proprietors  to  said  commissioners,  in  trust,  to 
be  laid  out  for  a  Federal  city  and  which  is  bounded  in  the  deeds  as 
follows  (p.  91): 

Beginning  on  the  east  side  of  Rock  Creek,  at  a  stone  standing  in  the  middle  of  the 
main  road  leading  from  Georgetown  to  Bladensburg;  thence  along  the  middle  of 
the  said  road  to  a  stone  standing  on  the  east  side  of  the  Reedy  Branch  of  Goose 
Creek;  thence  southeasterly,  making  an  angle  of  sixty-one  degrees  and  twenty 
minutes  with  the  meridian,  to  a  stone  standing  in  the  road  leading  from  Bladens- 
burg to  the  Eastern  Branch  ferry;  thence  south  to  a  stone  eighty  poles  north  of  the 
east  and  west  line  already  drawn  from  the  mouth  of  Goose  Creek  to  the  Eastern 
Branch;  then  east  parallel  to  the  said  east  and  west  line  to  the  Eastern  Branch; 
thence,  by  and  with  the  waters  of  the  Eastern  Branch,  Potomac  River,  and  Rock 
Creek,  to  the  beginning. 


GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  19 

These  boundaries  are  also  recognized  in  an  act  of  the  legislature  of 
Maryland,  passed  December  19,  1791,  entitled  "An  act  concerning  the 
Territory  of  Columbia  and  the  city  of  Washington"  (p.  96). 

By  an  act  of  Congress  approved  August  18, 1856  (11  Stats.,  120),  the 
bounds  of  the  corporation  of  the  city  of  Washington  were  extended  so 
far  as  to  comprehend  the  lower  Eastern  Branch  or  Navy -Yard  Bridge. 

The  bounds  of  the  city  of  Washington  and  of  the  county  of  Wash- 
ington were  also  extended  so  far  as  to  embrace  the  causeway  and  bridge 
across  the  Potomac  to  the  opposite  shore,  and  those  corporations 
empowered  to  adopt  and  enforce  such  rules  and  regulations  as  they 
might  deem  necessary  for  the  safety  and  security  of  property  and  of 
persons  passing  the  said  causeway  and  bridge.  (March  3,  1839;  5 
Stats.,  365.) 

These  boundaries  were  enlarged  by  the  consolidation  of  Georgetown 
and  the  city  of  Washington  by  the  act  of  Congress  approved  February 
11,  1895. 

AREA. 

The  city  of  Washington  as  first  established  contained  6,110. 94  acres; 
but  on  February  11,  1895,  its  area  was  increased  by  the  annexation 
of  Georgetown,  whose  precise  extent  has  never  been  determined,  but 
which  is  estimated  by  the  Surveyor  to  contain  543  acres. 

PRELIMINARY    AGREEMENT   OP    PROPRIETORS. 

The  owners  of  the  land,  in  consideration  of  the  great  benefit  they 
expected  to  derive  from  having  the  Federal  city  laid  off  upon  their  lands, 
etc.,  entered  into  a  preliminary  agreement  with  the  commissioners, 
April  12,  1791,  to  convey  the  land  in  trust  for  that  purpose  (p.  85). 

PROCUREMENT   OF  THE   SITE. 

The  proprietors  of  the  6,110.94  acres  conveyed  the  same  on  June  29, 
1791,  in  trust  to  two  trustees,  Thomas  Beall  and  John  Mackall  Gantt, 
"to  be  laid  out  for  a  Federal  city,  with  such  streets,  squares,  parcels, 
and  lots  as  the  President  of  the  United  States  for  the  time  being  shall 
approve"  (p.  92). 

Those  trustees  were  required  to  convey,  "for  the  use  of  the  United 
States  forever,"  to  the  commissioners  appointed  to  lay  out  the  District 
and  city  all  the  said  streets  and  such  of  the  said  squares,  parcels,  and 
lots  as  the  President  might  deem  proper  for  such  use. 

The  interest  of  the  State  of  Maryland  in  the  site  was,  by  the  legis- 
lature of  that  State,  on  December  19,  1791,  vested  in  the  same  trus- 
tees, subject  to  the  same  terms  and  conditions  as  those  to  which  the 
said  proprietors  had  subjected  their  land  (p.  97). 


20  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

BOUNDARIES    OF   THE   TRACTS   OF   THE   ORIGINAL    PROPRIETORS. 

The  border  lines  of  the  lands  of  the  several  original  owners  of  the 
site  of  the  city  of  Washington t  exclusive  of  former  Georgetown,  were 
laid  down  on  the  land,  as  a  preliminary  engineering  groundwork,  by 
Major  L'Enfant  in  designing  the  map  of  the  Federal  city,  and  the 
plan  of  the  city  was  subsequently  mapped  out  over  these  lines.  These 
lines  appear  on  the  portfolio  maps  made  by  Nicholas  King.  The 
King  set  of  maps  was  reproduced  by  the  United  States  Coast  and 
Geodetic  Survey  Office,  approved  for  publication  by  the  superintend- 
ent of  that  office  April  4,  1884,  and  duly  published  by  that  office  for 
distribution.  Mr.  King  also  compiled  them  into  a  map  about  5  feet 
square,  which  is  called  the  King  map  of  1803.  These  farm  lines  are 
marked  across  the  respective  squares  in  the  records  of  the  apportion- 
ment of  lots  between  the  original  proprietors  and  the  first  commis- 
sioners. These  records,  with  the  King  maps,  are  in  the  custody  of  the 
officer  in  charge  of  public  buildings  and  grounds.  In  1884  Mr.  John 
M.  Stewart,  civil  engineer,  of  the  office  of  the  commissioner  of  public 
buildings  and  grounds,  published  a  condensed  map  showing  these 
lines,  which  is  generally  considered  an  authority  in  determining  who 
were  the  original  proprietors  of  the  land  embraced  in  lots,  and  in 
several  cases  ha?  been  so  accepted  by  the  local  courts. 

THE    DESIGNING    OP  THE    PLAN    OF   THE    CITY. 

The  credit  of  designing  the  plan  of  Washington  is  niainty  due  to 
Maj.  Pierre  Charles  L'Enfant,  who  was  employed  for  that  purpose, 
but  frequently  conferred  with  President  Washingion  and  others  whose 
views  had  a  material  influence  in  the  matter.  His  plan,  without  sub- 
stantial alteration,  was  approved  by  President  Washington  in  August, 
1791.  His  employment  in  that  capacity  was  discontinued  March  1, 
1792. 

The  following  reference  by  President  Washington  to  the  subject 
will  be  of  interest: 

That  many  alterations  have  been  made  from  L'Enfant's  plan  by  Major  Ellicott, 
with  the  approbation  of  the  Executive,  is  not  denied;  that  some  were  essential  is 
avowed;  and  had  it  not  been  for  the  materials  which  he  happened  to  possess  it  is 
probable  that  no  engraving  from  L'Enfant's  drafts  ever  would  have  been  exhib- 
ited to  the  public,  for  after  the  disagreement  took  place  between  him  and  the  com- 
missioners his  obstinancy  threw  every  difficulty  in  the  way  of  its  accomplishment. 

Andrew  Ellicott  succeeded  Major  L'Enfant.  He  had  assisted  him 
in  surveying  the  site,  and  was  directed  to  "finish  the  laying  of  the 
plan  on  the  ground,"  and  to  prepare  a  plan  from  the  materials  gathered 
and  from  the  information  obtained  by  him  while  assisting  L'Enfant 
in  making  the  surveys.  His  plan,  which  was  substantially  that  of 
L'Enfant,  was  the  first  plan  engraved  and  published  for  distribution. 
Its  publication  and  promulgation  were  alluded  to  by  President  Wash- 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  21 

ington  as  "giving  the  final  and  regulating  stamp  to  the  city  of  Washing- 
ton." The  general  features  of  this  plan  have  stood  the  test  of  time  so 
well  that  Congress,  by  an  act  approved  August  27,  1888  (25  Stats.,  451), 
directed  that  "no  future  subdivisions  of  land  in  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia without  the  limits  of  the  cities  of  Washington  and  Georgetown 
shall  be  recorded  in  the  surveyor's  office  of  said  District  unless  made  in 
conformity  with  the  general  plan  of  the  city  of  Washington,"  and 
adopted  it  in  the  general  highway-extension  law  of  March  2,  1893 
(27  Stats.,  532). 

THE    FEE   SIMPLE   TO   THE   STREETS    AND    RESERVATIONS. 

In  consequence  of  disputes  as  to  the  meaning  of  portions  of  the  deed, 
the  trustees  refused  to  convey  the  streets  and  reservations  to  the  com- 
missioners appointed  to  ky  out  the  city;  but  the  Supreme  Court  of 
the  United  States  decided  that  the  fee  simple  therein  was  vested  in  the 
United  States.  (John  P.  Van  Ness  and  Marcia,  his  wife,  complainants, 
appellants,  v.  The  Mayor,  Aldermen,  and  Board  of  Common  Council  of 
the  City  of  Washington  and  the  United  States  of  America,  defendants, 
4  Peters,  232.)  This  relates  only  to  the  streets  and  avenues  of  the 
city  of  Washington  as  it  existed  prior  to  its  consolidation  with 
Georgetown. 

DISTRIBUTION   OF   LOTS. 

The  deed  in  trust  directed  that  a  fair  and  equal  division  should  be 
made  of  the  land  not  taken  for  streets,  squares,  parcels,  and  lots  for  the 
use  of  the  United  States;  that  the  lots  assigned  to  the  proprietors 
should  be  conveyed  to  them  by  the  trustees,  and  that  the  other  lots  be 
sold  as  the  President  might  direct;  the  proceeds  of  such  sales  to  be  first 
applied  to  the  payment,  in  money,  to  the  proprietors  for  the  land  set 
apart  for  the  use  of  the  United  States,  excepting  the  streets,  at  £25, 
or  $66f  per  acre,"  and  the  remainder  to  providing  public  buildings  as 
contemplated  by  sections  3  and  4  of  the  act  of  July  16,  1790. 

While  the  trustees,  by  a  deed  dated  November  30, 1796,  conveyed  to 
the  commissioners  appointed  to  lay  out  the  city  such  lands  as  were 
allotted  to  the  United  States,  no  reconveyance  was  made  by  the  trustees 
to  the  original  grantors  of  the  lands  to  which  they  were  entitled  under 
the  trust  deeds.  The  act  of  the  Maryland  legislature  of  December  19, 
1791  (p.  100),  however,  which  ratified  the  cession  of  the  territory 
selected  as  the  site  of  the  District,  provided  that  the  commissioners 
should  have  recorded  every  allotment  and  assignment  to  the  respective 
proprietors. 

These  entries  of  allotment,  together  with  the  certificates  thereof, 
are  the  only  evidence  of  title  of  the  original  grantors  to  the  portions 

« Pennsylvania  currency,  then  adopted  in  Pennsylvania,  New  Jersey,  Maryland, 
and  Delaware. 


22  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTKICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

to  which  they  were  entitled  under  the  provisions  in  their  trust  deeds. 
(See  opinion  of  Attorney-General  Gushing,  dated  August  1,  1855.) 
The  land  was  divided  as  follows: 

Acres. 

Total  number  of  acres  taken  for  the  city 6, 110. 94 

Donated  to  the  United  States  for  avenues,  streets,  and  alleys 3, 606 

Donated  to  the  United  States,  10,136  building  lots 982 

Bought  by  the  United  States  for  public  buildings  and  use 541 

Total  number  of  acres  taken  by  the  United  States 5, 129 


10,136  lots  given  back  to  former  owners 981. 94 

A  list  of  the  lots  so  assigned  to  the  original  proprietors,  with  names 
and  dates,  is  contained  in  Senate  Document  No.  18,  Fifty -seventh  Con- 
gress, first  session. 

The  act  of  the  same  State,  entitled  "A  further  supplement  to  the 
act  concerning  the  Territory  of  Columbia  and  the  city  of  Washing- 
ton," approved  December  28,  1793,  prescribed: 

That  the  certificates  granted,  or  which  may  be  granted,  by  the  said  commissioners, 
or  any  two  of  them,  to  purchasers  of  lots  in  the  said  city,  with  acknowledgment  of 
the  payment  of  the  whole  purchase  money,  and  interest,  if  any  shall  have  arisen 
thereon,  and  recorded  agreeably  to  the  directions  of  the  act  concerning  the  Territory 
of  Columbia  and  city  of  Washington,  shall  be  sufficient  and  effectual  to  vest  the  legal 
estate  in  the  purchasers,  their  heirs  and  assigns,  according  to  the  import  of  such  cer- 
tificates, without  any  deed  or  formal  conveyance  (p.  114). 

As  the  541  acres  for  public  buildings  and  reservations  were  required 
to  be  paid  for  out  of  the  first  proceeds  of  the  sale  of  the  lots  donated 
to  the  Government,  it  will  be  seen  that  of  the  6,111  acres  5,129,  or 
five-sixths  of  the  whole,  were  a  gift  to  the  Government.  Thus  the 
United  States  not  only  got  without  cost  the  fee  simple  in  the  streets 
and  avenues  and  the  sites  and  grounds  for  the  Capitol  and  other  pub- 
lic buildings,  but  received  a  large  amount  of  mone}r  from  the  net  pro- 
ceeds of  the  sales  of  the  alternate  building  lots  apportioned  to  it. 


NAMING    THE   CITY. 


The  first  official  mention  of  the  city  by  name  was  in  a  letter  of  the 
original  commissioners  to  Major  L'Enfant,  dated  September  9,  1791, 
in  which  they  state:  "We  have  agreed  that  the  Federal  district  shall 
be  called  the  Territory  of  Columbia  and  the  Federal  city  the  city  of 
Washington,"  although  they  had  no  statutory  authority  to  name  either 
of  them  (p.  94). 

The  first  reference  to  it  by  its  present  name,  in  an  act  of  Congress, 
is  in  the  title  of  "An  act  authorizing  a  loan  for  the  use  of  the  city  of 
Washington,  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  for  other  purposes  therein 
mentioned,"  approved  May  6,  1796  (1  Stats.,  461),  but  the  name  does 
not  occur  in  the  body  of  the  law.  Jt  is  mentioned  by  that  name  in  an 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  -  23 

act  of  Maryland,  entitled  "An  act  concerning  the  Territory  of  Columbia 
and  the  city  of  Washington,"  approved  December  19,  1791  (p.  97). 

The  most  explicit  statutory  application  of  the  name  by  Congress  is  in 
the  act  of  February  21, 1871,  which  prescribes  that  "that  portion  of  said 
District  included  within  the  present  limits  of  the  city  of  Washington 
shall  continue  to  be  known  as  the  city  of  Washington."  (16  Stats., 
428.) 


THE    FIRST   CITY      OFFICIALS. 


The  first  officials  of  the  Federal  city  were  the  President  of  the 
United  States,  the  three  commissioners  appointed  by  the  President 
under  act  of  July  16,  1790,  and,  to  a  limited  extent,  the  officers  of  the 
levy  court.  On  July  1,  1802,  the  office  of  the  three  commissioners 
was  abolished  by  section  1  of  "An  act  to  abolish  the  board  of  commis- 
sioners in  the  city  of  Washington,  and  for  other  purposes,"  approved 
May  1,  1802  (2  Stats.,  175),  which  directed  the  commissioners  to 
deliver  all  their  official  records  and  property  relating  to  said  city  to  an 
officer  created  b}^  said  act  and  styled  "  superintendent,"  to  be  appointed 
by  the  President,  and  to  succeed  to  all  the  powers  and  duties  of  said 
commissioners. 

This  office  of  "  superintendent "  -was  abolished  March  3, 1817,  by  the 
operation  of  an  act  of  Congress  approved  April  29, 1816  (3  Stats.,  324), 
which  in  lieu  thereof  created  the  office  of  one  commissioner  to  super- 
intend public  buildings,  and  succeed  to  all  the  powers  and  duties  of  the 
former  three  commissioners  and  of  said  superintendent,  but  to  ' '  hold 
no  other  office  under  the  authority  of  the  United  States." 

The  office  of  commissioner  in  charge  of  public  buildings  so  created 
was  abolished  and  its  duties  and  powers  transferred  to  the  Chief  of 
Engineers  of  the  United  States  Army  by  an  act  of  Congress  approved 
March  2,  1867.  (14  Stats.,  466.) 

The  duties  which  where  thus  transferred  to  the  Chief  of  Engineers 
were,  with  subsequent  additions  and  changes,  those  which  related  to 
the  supervision  of  the  national  public  buildings  and  grounds  in  the 
city  of  Washington,  excepting  the  care  and  improvement  of  the  streets 
and  other  public  highways. 

The  duties  which  commonly  appertain  to  municipal  control  were,  as 
hereinafter  stated,  intrusted  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  city  of  Washing- 
ton \>y  an  act  incorporating  them  for  that  purpose. 

THE    FIRST    CHARTER    OF   THE   CITY    OP    WASHINGTON. 

The  first  incorporation  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  city  of  Washington 
was  effected  by  an  act  of  Congress  approved  May  3,  1802.  (2  Stats., 
195.)  This  charter  provided  for  a  mayor  appointable  by  the  President 
of  the  United  States,  and  a  city  council  to  be  elected  by  the  people. 
This  charter  was  modified  by  subsequent  acts  of  Congress.  The  first 
mayor  was  appointed  in  June,  1802,  and  was  reappointed  annually  and 


24  GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

served  until  the  second  Monday  in  June,  1812.  An  act  of  Congress  of 
May  4,  1812  (2  Stats.,  721),  devolved  the  duty  of  electing  a  mayor,  to 
take  office  on  the  second  Monday  of  each  subsequent  June,  upon  the  city 
council,  which  was  elected  by  the  qualified  voters  of  the  city.  That 
method  was  in  force  until  the  first  Monday  of  June,  1820,  from  which 
date,  pursuant  to  an  act  of  Congress  approved  May  15,  1820,  the 
mayor  was  elected  by  the  people  for  terms  of  two  years  until  May 
31,  1871,  on  which  date  the  charter  of  the  corporation  expired  pursu- 
ant to  the  provisions  of  an  act  of  Congress  approved  February  21, 
1871,  entitled  "An  act  to  provide  a  government  for  the  District  of 
Columbia"  (16  Stats.,  419),  which  continued  the  name  of  the  city  of 
Washington,  but  only  as  a  local  designation.  (A  list  of  the  principal 
officials  of  the  city  is  contained  in  Senate  Document  No.  238,  Fifty- 
fifth  Congress,  second  session,  by  Wilhemus  B.  Bryan,  esq.) 

NAMING  THE  STREETS. 

The  commissioners  who  first  named  the  city  also  stated  in  their  let- 
ter of  September  9,  1791,  informing  Major  L'Enfant  of  their  action 
in  that  respect: 

We  have  also  agreed  that  the  streets  be  named  alphabetically  one  way  and  numer- 
ically the  other;  the  former  to  be  divided  into  north  and  south  and  the  latter  into 
east  and  west  numbers  from  the  Capitol  (p.  95).  (See  also  "Naming  the  Avenues," 
p.  25.) 

WIDTH   OP   HIGHWAYS. 

The  widths  of  the  streets  within  the  city  of  Washington,  between 
the  building  lines,  are: 

North  and  South  Capitol,  130;  East  Capitol,  160;  Boundary,  or 
Florida  avenue,  80;  Water,  60  and  80;  Maine,0  85;  Missouri,a  85. 

North:  ABCDEFGHIKLMNOPQRSTUVW 
90  90  80  70  90  100  90  90  90  147.890  90  80  90  90  90  90  90  90  90    80   80 

South:  ABCDEFGHIKLMNOPQR    STUVW 
90  90  80  90  90  70  100  80  90  80    90  90  90  85  85  85  85   85  85  80   80  40 

East:    }     1     234     5     67     8     9    10  11   12    13    14   15  16    17   18  19   20   21 
80  110  90  90  85  100  85  90  100  90  80  90  112  90  100  90  80  100  80  80  100  80 
22   23   24 
80   80   80 

West:    £     1     2     3    04  04%    5  »6     7     8     9    10     11     12    13    13}    14    15    16    17 
80  90  90  110  80  110  80  100  85  100  85  85  111.5  85  110    70    110  110  160  110 
18   19   20  21  22   23   24  25  26  27  28 
90  110  90  90  90  100  90  90  80  70  80 

°  Maine  and  Missouri  streets  are  commonly  called  "avenues;"  but  the  act  of  the 
corporation  of  the  city  of  Washington,  approved  March  23,  1826,  by  which  they 
were  named,  designates  them  as  streets. 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  25 

OUTSIDE  THE  CITY:  Not  less  than  90  feet,  except  streets  existing 
March  2,  1893  (27  Stat.,  532),  or  streets  60  feet  wide,  with  a  building- 
restriction  line  to  make  it  90  feet  (31  Stat.,  248). 

WIDTH    OF    AVENUES. 

IN  THE  CITY:  Connecticut,  130;  Delaware,  160;  Georgia,  160;  Indi- 
ana, 160;  Kentucky,  120;  Louisiana,  160;  Maryland,  160;  Massachu- 
setts, 160.  (See  footnote  as  to  Maine  and  Missouri  avenues,  so  called.) 
New  York,  east  of  Fifteenth  street,  130;  New  York,  west  of  Seven- 
teenth street,  160;  New  Jersey,  160;  North  Carolina,  160;  New  Hamp- 
shire, 120;  Ohio,  160;  Pennsylvania,  east  of  Fifteenth  street,  160; 
Pennsylvania,  west  of  Seventeenth  street,  130;  Rhode  Island,  130; 
South  Carolina,  160;  Tennessee,  120;  Vermont,  130;  Virginia,  Mall  to 
Eastern  Branch,  160;  Virginia,  B  street  to  Rock  Creek,  120. 

OUTSIDE  THE  CITY:  Not  more  than  160  feet  nor  less  than  then  ex- 
isting width  in  case  of  avenues  existing  March  2,  1893  (27  Stat.,  532). 

NAMING   THE   AVENUES. 

Neither  the  acts  of  Congress  nor  the  records  of  the  commissioners 
under  whose  direction  and  surveillance  the  city  of  Washington  was 
established  contain  authority  for  nor  account  of  the  naming  of  the 
avenues  in  that  city,  other  than  the  incidental  recognition  of  those  on 
the  Dermot  map  of  1795,  which  was  formally  adopted  by  President 
Washington  in  his  letter  of  March  2,  1797,  to  the  trustees  appointed 
to  lay  out  the  federal  city;  but  by  an  act  of  Congress,  approved  Feb- 
ruary 16,  1904  (33  Stats.,  pt.  1,  14),  the  Commissioners  of  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia  are  directed  to  name  or  rename  streets,  avenues, 
alleys,  highways,  and  reservations  in  that  part  of  the  District  outside 
of  the  city  of  Washington  under  such  system  as  they  shall  see  fit. 


ORIGINAL   ALLEYS. 


President  Washington,  in  his  order  of  October  17,  1791,  regulating 
the  manner  and  materials  for  building  in  the  city  of  Washington, 
states:  "  The  way  into  the  squares  being  designed  in  a  special  manner 
for  the  common  use  or  convenience  of  the  occupiers  of  the  respective 
squares  the  property  in  the  same  is  reserved  in  the  public,  so  that 
there  may  be  an  immediate  interference  on  any  abuse  of  the  use  thereof 
by  any  individual  to  the  nuisance  or  obstruction  of  others/'  (Webb's 
Digest,  p.  57.) 

a  The  name  of  Four-and-a-half  street  NW.  was  changed  to  Fourth  street  NW. 
June  6,  1900.  (31  Stats.,  668.)  The  name  of  that  portion  of  Fourth  street  NW., 
formerly  a  part  of  Four-and-a-half  street,  extending  from  D  street  to  Pennsylvania 
avenue,  was  changed  to  John  Marshall  place  March  1, 1901.  (31  Stats.,  828.)  This 
street  is  therefore  John  Marshall  place  from  North  D  street  to  Pennsylvania  avenue; 
Fourth  street  from  that  avenue  to  the  middle  of  the  Mall,  and  Four-and-a-half  street 
thence  south. 


26  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

GEORGETOWN. 

The  part  of  Washington  which  was  formerly  Georgetown  was  laid 
out  pursuant  to  an  act  of  the  province  of  Maryland  dated  June  8,  1751 
(p.  128),  passed  in  response  to  a  petition  of  several  inhabitants  of  Fred- 
erick County,  in  said  State.  This  act  appointed  seven  commissioners 
to  purchase  60  acres  belonging  to  Messrs.  George  Gordon  and  George 
Beall,  on  the  Potomac  River, ' ;  above  the  mouth  of  Rock  Creek,  adjacent 
to  the  inspection  house  in  the  county  aforesaid,"  and  to  cause  the  said 
60  acres  to  be  "surveyed,  divided,  and  laid  out,  as  near  as  conveniently 
may  be,  into  80  equal  lots,  allowing  sufficient  space  or  quantity  thereof 
for  streets,  lanes,  and  alleys.  The  act  then  adds  that  upon  the  com- 
pletion of  said  proceedings  the  localit}'  is  "erected  into  a  town,  and 
shall  be  called  bjr  the  name  of  Georgetown."  It  was  never  incorpo- 
rated as  a  city,  but  was  commonly  called  the  city  of  Georgetown  as  a 
consequence  of  the  casual  reference  to  it  b}r  that  title  in  numerous  acts 
of  Congress;  unless  a  purpose  to  create  it  a  city  may  be  inferred  from 
the  clause  in  the  act  of  Congress  of  Februaiy  21,  1871,  which  directs 
that  "that  portion  of  said  District  included  within  the  limits  of  the 
city  of  Georgetown  shall  continue  to  be  known  as  the  city  of  George- 
town." (16  Stats.,  428.) 

The  boundaries  and  jurisdiction  of  Georgetown  were  extended  and 
defined  by  the  following  enactments  of  Maryland  and  Congress:  Acts 
of  Maryland  passed  December  26,  1783  (p.  134:);  January  22,  1785 
(p.  134);  and  December  25,  1789  (p.  136);  and  acts  of  Congress 
approved  March  3,  1805  (2  Stats.,  335);  March  3, 1809  (ib.,  537);  June 
4,  1813  (3  Stats.,  1);  January  14,  1823  (6  Stats.,  280);  March  3,  1826 
(4  Stats.,  140);  May  25,  1832  (ib.,  518);  July  4,  1836  (6  Stats.,  683); 
July  27,  1842  (5  Stats.,  497);  February  27,  1845  (6  Stats.,  927). 

Under  the  statute  of  March  3,  1805,  the  "Fenwick  map"  adopted 
by  the  act  of  March  3f  1809,  was  prepared.  The  extension  of  March 
3,  1826,  was  made  to  include  the  residence  of  John  Cox  to  enable  him 
to  retain  his  residence  and  be  eligible  to  hold  the  office  of  mayor. 

The  general  supposition  is  that  the  town  was  named  in  honor  of 
George  II,  then  the  reigning  sovereign  of  Great  Britain,  but  it  is  also 
contended  that  it  was  named  as  a  compliment  to  the  two  Georges  from 
whom  the  site  was  obtained. 

The  commission,  whose  membership  was  reduced  to  five  in  1784, 
continued  to  exercise  the  local  municipal  authority  in  the  town  until 
December  25,  1789,  when  the  town  was  incorporated  by  an  act  of  the 
general  assembly  of  Maryland  of  that  date,  with  a  mayor,  recorder, 
aldermen,  and  common  council  (p.  136).  The  first  mayor  was  appointed 
by  that  act  for  one  year,  to  commence  January  1, 1790.  The  office  was 
thereafter  filled  annually  on  the  first  Monday  of  January  by  the  votes 
of  the  mayor,  recorder,  and  common  council,  or  in  an  analogous  manner, 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OP'    COLUMBIA.  27 

until  the  fourth  Monday  of  February,  1831.  The  office  was  then  and 
thereafter  biennially  filled  by  vote  of  the  people. 

The  streets  of  this  part  of  Washington  generally  run  due  north  and 
south  and  east  and  west. 

By  an  arbitrary  order  of  the  District  Commissioners,  dated  October 
4,  1880,  the  north  and  south  streets  were  renamed  from  Twenty -sixth 
to  Thirty -eighth,  both  included,  in  continuation  of  the  western  series 
of  the  streets  of  Washington  having  the  same  general  direction;  and 
the  east  and  west  streets  from  K  (or  Water)  to  W,  in  order  to  agree  as 
nearly  as  practicable  with  the  corresponding  streets  in  Washington. 

A  few  streets,  viz^  Prospect,  Dumbarton,  Olive,  Jefferson,  Valley, 
Potomac,  Grace,  and  Needwood,  were  so  situated  as  not  to  admit  of 
designation  under  either  of  those  systems. 

The  streets  are  60  feet  wide  from  building  line  to  building  line, 
except  K,  which  is  70;  M,  82£;  Thirty-fifth,  80;  Thirty-second  from 
K  to  the  angle  south  of  N,  82£;  Valley,  33;  Mill,  33,  and  Poplar,  40. 

The  Commissioners  were  directed  by  the  act  of  February  11,  1895, 
consolidating  Washington  and  Georgetown,  to  cause  the  nomenclature 
of  the  streets  and  avenues  of  the  latter  to  conform  to  those  of  the 
former  as  far  as  practicable,  but  have  never  acted  under  that  require- 
ment. 

The  streets  in  the  part  of  Georgetown  laid  out  under  the  act  of 
Maryland  of  June  8,  1751,  were  acquired  by  the  public  in  practically 
the  same  manner  in  which  the  title  to  the  original  streets  of  the  chy 
of  Washington  was  derived,  but  the  status  of  those  streets,  unlike  the 
status  of  the  original  streets  and  avenues  of  the  original  city  of  Wash- 
ington, has  never  been  judicially  determined. 

Georgetown  had  been  enlarged  by  numerous  additions,  until,  as 
calculated  by  the  surveyor  of  the  District,  it  embraced  about  543  acres. 

Its  charter  was  revoked  May  31,  1871,  by  the  act  of  Congress  of 
February  21,  1871,  aforesaid,  by  which  its  name  was  retained  as  a 
topographical  designation,  until  its  consolidation  with  Washington  by 
the  act  of  February  11,  1895  (28  Stats.,  650),  as  follows: 

AN  ACT  changing  the  name  of  Georgetown,  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  for  other  purposes. 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the  United  States  of  America 
in  Congress  assembled,  That  from  and  after  the  passage  of  this  act  all  that  part  of  the 
District  of  Columbia  embraced  within  the  bounds  and  now  constituting  the  city  of 
Georgetown,  as  referred  to  in  said  acts  of  February  twenty-first,  eighteen  hundred 
and  seventy-one,  and  June  twentieth,  eighteen  hundred  and  seventy-four,  shall  no 
longer  be  known  by  the  name  and  title  in  law  of  the  city  of  Georgetown,  but  the 
same  shall  be  known  as  and  shall  constitute  a  part  of  the  city  of  Washington,  the 
Federal  capital;  and  all  general  laws,  ordinances,  and  regulations  of  the  city  of 
Washington  be,  and  the  same  are  hereby,  extended  and  made  applicable  to  that  part 
of  the  District  of  Columbia  formerly  known  as  the  city  of  Georgetown;  and  all  gen- 
eral laws,  regulations,  and  ordinances  of  the  city  of  Georgetown  be,  and  the  same 
are  hereby,  repealed;  that  the  title  and  existence  of  said  Georgetown  as  a  separate 


28  GOVERNMENT    OV    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

and  independent  city  by  law  is  hereby  abolished,  and  that  the  Commissioners  of  the 
District  of  Columbia  be,  and  they  are  hereby,  directed  to  cause  the  nomenclature  ot 
the  streets  and  avenues  of  Georgetown  to  conform  to  those  of  Washington  so  far  as 
practicable.  And  the  said  Commissioners  are  also  directed  to  have  the  squares  in 
Georgetown  renumbered,  so  that  no  square  shall  hereafter  bear  a  like  number  to  any 
square  in  the  city  of  Washington:  Proiided,  That  nothing  in  this  act  shall  operate 
to  affect  or  repeal  existing  law  making  Georgetown  a  port  of  entry,  except  as  to  its 
name. 

THE    LEVY    COURTS. 

When  the  District  of  Columbia  was  first  established  the  local  public 
affairs  of  that  portion  of  its  territory  located  in  Maryland  were  admin- 
istered by  two  bodies,  which  had  jurisdiction  over  the  portions  derived 
from  Prince  George  County  and  from  Montgomery  County,  respec- 
tively, and  were  composed  of  justices  of  the  peace,  who  were  commis- 
sioned by  the  governor  and  council  of  that  State  as  "justices  of  the 
levy  court." 

The  jurisdiction  for  the  same  purposes  in  the  portion  derived  from 
Virginia  at  that  time  reposed  in  the  county  courts  of  that  State. 

No  subsequent  legislation  seems  to  have  been  enacted  by  Congress 
relative  to  the  jurisdiction  of  the  levy  court  of  the  county  of  Alex- 
andria except  as  such  jurisdiction  was  affected  by  the  act  receding  that 
county  to  Virginia,  hereinafter  mentioned. 

By  section  11  of  an  act  of  Congress  approved  February  27,  1801 
(2  Stats.,  107),  the  President  of  the  United  States  was  directed  to 
appoint,  in  and  for  each  of  said  counties,  an  indefinite  number  of 
justices  of  the  peace,  to  continue  in  office  for  five  years.  Section  4  of 
an  act  approved  March  3, 1801  (ib.,  115),  constituted  these  magistrates 
a  "board  of  commissioners,"  with  the  same  powers  and  duties  as  those 
then  performed  by  the  lev}7  courts  of  Maryland. 

Under  the  above-mentioned  and  subsequent  laws  of  Congress  the 
levy  courts  administrated  the  local  government  affairs  of  that  part  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  situated  outside  of  the  city  of  Washington 
and  of  Georgetown. 

The  membership  of  the  court  for  that  part  of  the  District  derived 
from  Maryland  was  fixed  at  seven  by  the  act  of  July  1.  1812 
(2  Stats.,  773),  to  be  annual^  designated  by  the  President  of  the 
United  States  from  among  the  existing  magistrates  of  the  county; 
two  from  east  of  Rock  Creek,  outside  of  the  city  of  Washington;  two 
from  west  of  Rock  Creek  and  outside  of  Georgetown,  and  three  from 
Georgetown.  The  city  of  Washington,  although  not  represented  in 
the  court,  was  required  by  section  11  of  the  same  act  to  bear  and 
defray  equally  with  the  other  parts  of  the  county  the  general  county 
expenses  and  charges,  other  than  for  the  expenses  of  the  roads  and 
bridges  outside  of  the  limits  of  Washington  and  Georgetown;  but  by 
section  16  of  the  act  of  May  17,  1848  (9  Stats.,  230),  the  President  was 
directed  to  appoint  four  members  from  the  city  of  Washington  in 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  29 

addition  to  the  seven  appointable  from  the  other  portions  of  the 
District. 

The  requirement  that  the  membership  of  the  court  should  be 
selected  from  among  the  justices  of  the  peace  for  the  county  of  Wash- 
ington was  repeal^^tay  3,  1862,  by  an  act  of  that  date  (12  Stats., 
384,  sec.  8).  ^^ 

By  an  act  approved  March  3,  1863  (12  Stats.,  799),  the  membership 
of  the  court  was  reduced  to  nine  persons,  without  respect  to  their 
occupations,  to  be  appointed  by  the  President  and  confirmed  by  the 
Senate,  in  such  manner  that  the  terms  of  one-third  of  the  members 
should  expire  annually.  Its  jurisdiction  and  functions  were  specific- 
ally prescribed  by  that  act  and  remained  substantially  as  so  estab- 
lished until  May  31,  1871,  when  the  court  was  abolished  by  the  act  of 
February  21,  1871  (16  Stats.,  428,  sec.  40),  which  consolidated  the 
local  governments  in  the  District  into  one  municipality. 

FIRST  MUNICIPAL  GOVERNMENT  OF  THE    ENTIRE    DISTRICT  OF  COLUMBIA. 


/ 


The  act  of  Congress  of  February  21,  1871,  which  revoked  the  char- 
ters of  the  corporations  of  the  city  of  Washington,  Georgetown,  and 
the  levy  court  of  the  county  of  Washington,  established  in  their  stead 
a  single  municipal  government  named  the  District  of  Columbia.  All 
valid  laws  and  ordinances  then  existing  in  the  District  were,  by  said 
act,  continued  in  force.  The  new  municipality  consisted  of  a  governor, 
a  board  of  public  works  composed  of  the  governor  and  four  other  per- 
sons, a  secretary,  a  "board  of  health,  a  legislative  assembly  consisting 
of  a  council  of  11  members  and  a  house  of  delegates  consisting  of  22 
members,  and  a  Delegate  in  the  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States. 

The  governor,  the  board  of  public  works,  the  secretary,  the  board 
of  health,  and  the  council  were  appointed  by  the  President  of  the 
United  States,  by  and  with  the  consent  of  the  Senate.  The  members 
of  the  house  of  delegates  and  the  Delegate  in  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives were  elected  by  the  qualified  voters  of  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia. The  official  term  of  the  governor,  members  of  the  board  of 
public  works,  the  secretary,  and  the  members  of  the  board  of  health 
was  four  years;  the  term  of  the  members  of  the  council  and  the  Dele- 
gate to  Congress  two  years,  and  the  term  of  the  members  of  the  house 
of  delegates  one  year. 

SECOND   MUNICIPAL   GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    ENTIRE    DISTRICT   OF 

COLUMBIA. 

On  June  20, 1874,  by  an  act  of  Congress  of  that  date  (18  Stats.,  116), 
the  form  of  government  established  by  the  act  of  February  21, 1871, 
was  abolished,  and  the  executive  municipal  authority  in  the  District 
temporarily  vested  in  three  Commissioners  appointed  by  the  President 


30  GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

of  the  United  States  and  confirmed  by  the  Senate,  who  succeeded  in 
general  to  the  powers  and  duties  of  the  governor  and  the  board  of 
public  works,  and  were  assisted  by  an  officer  of  the  Engineer  Corps  of 
the  United  States  Army,  detailed  for  that  purpose  under  the  require- 
ments of  the  first-named  act.  1^ 

This  temporary  form  of  government  existed  ui^rrVuly  1, 1878,  when, 
pursuant  to  an  act  of  Congress  of  June  11, 1878  (20  Stats. ,  102),  it  was 
succeeded  by  the  present  form,  for  which  see  pages  141,  et  sequentes. 


APPENDIX  1. 

[Abstract  of  proceedings  of  Congress  relative  to  locating  the  seat  of  government,  carefully  compared 
with  the  original  records  in  the  Library  of  Congress  by  Mr.  Louis  C.  Wilson,  assistant  secretary  to 
the  Commissioners.] 

The  Congress  of  the  Revolution  first  met  at  Philadelphia,  Monday, 
September  5,  1774,  and  continued  to  hold  its  sessions  there  until 
Wednesday,  December  12, 1776,  when,  in  consequence  of  the  approach 
of  the  British  army,  it  adjourned  to  Baltimore,  where  it  met  on  Friday 
the  20th  and  continued  until  Tuesday,  February  27,  1777,  when  it 
adjourned  to  meet  at  Philadelphia  on  Wednesday,  the  4th  of  March, 
when  it  met  and  adjourned  from  day  to  day  until  the  12th  of  that 
month. 

On  Sunda}7,  September  14,  1777,  it  was — 

Resolved,  That  if  Congress  shall  be  obliged  to  remove  from  Philadelphia,  Lancaster 
be  the  place  where  they  shall  meet. 

It  continued  to  meet  in  Philadelphia  until  the  18th  of  that  month, 
and  adjourned  that  evening  to  meet  the  next  morning.  But  in  the 
meantime  the  President  received  a  letter  from  Colonel  Hamilton,  one 
of  General  Washington's  aids,  which  intimated  the  necessity  of  remov- 
ing immediately  from  Philadelphia.  Agreeably  to  the  resolve  of  the 
14th  it  met  in  Lancaster,  in  the  State  of  Pennsylvania,  on  Saturday  the 
27th;  on  the  same  day  adjourned  to  Yorktown  in  that  State,  where  it 
assembled  on  Tuesday  the  30th,  and  continued  to  meet  until  Saturdajr 
the  27th  of  June,  1778,  when,  having  been  informed  by  a  letter  from 
General  Washington  on  the  18th  (read  in  Congress  on  the  20th)  that 
the  enemy  had  evacuated  the  city  of  Philadelphia,  adjourned  to  that 
city,  where  it  met  on  Thursday  the  2d  of  July. 

On  the  4th  of  June,  1783,  it  resolved — 

That  copies  of  the  act  of  the  legislature  of  Maryland,  relative  to  the  cession  of  the 
city  of  Annapolis  to  Congress  for  their  permanent  residence;  and  also  copies  of  the 
act  of  the  legislature  of  New  York,  relative  to  the  cession  of  the  town  of  Kingston 
for  the  same  purpose,  together  with  the  papers  which  accompanied  both  acts,  be 
transmitted  to  the  executives  of  the  respective  States,  and  that  they  be  informed  by 
the  President,  that  Congress  have  assigned  the  first  Monday  in  October  next  for 
taking  the  said  offers  into  consideration. 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  31 

On  the  21st  of  June,  1783,  it  was  resolved  by  Congress — 

That  the  President  and  supreme  executive  council  of  Pennsylvania  be  informed 
that  the  authority  of  the  United  States  having  been  this  day  grossly  insulted  by  the 
disorderly  and  menacing  appearance  of  a  body  of  armed  soldiers  about  the  place 
within  which  Congress  were  assembled,  and  the  peace  of  this  city  being  endangered 
by  the  mutinous  disposition  of  the  said  troops  now  in  the  barracks,  it  is,  in  the 
opinion  of  Congress,  necessary  that  effectual  measures  be  immediately  taken  for 
supporting  the  public  authority. 

Resolved,  That  the  committee,  on  a  letter  from  Colonel  Butler,  be  directed  to  con- 
fer, without  loss  of  time,  with  the  supreme  executive  council  of  Pennsylvania,  on 
the  practicability  of  carrying  the  preceding  resolution  into  effect;  and  that  in  case  it 
shall  appear  to  the  committee  that  there  is  not  a  satisfactory  ground  for  expecting 
adequate  and  prompt  exertions  of  this  State  for  supporting  the  dignity  of  the  Federal 
Government,  the  President  on  the  advice  of  the  committee  be  authorized  and 
directed  to  summon  the  members  of  Congress  to  meet  on  Thursday  next  at  Trenton 
or  Princeton,  in  New  Jersey,  in  order  that  further  and  more  effectual  measures  may 
be  taken  for  suppressing  the  present  revolt,  and  maintaining  the  dignity  and  author- 
ity of  the  United  States. 

Resolved,  That  the  Secretary  at  War  be  directed  to  communicate  to  the  commander 
in  chief,  the  state  and  disposition  of  the  said  troops,  in  order  that  he  may  take  imme- 
diate measures  to  dispatch  to  this  city  such  force  as  he  may  judge  expedient  for  sup- 
pressing any  disturbances  that  may  ensue. 

Congress  did  not  meet  again  until  the  30th,  when  they  assembled  at 
Princeton  upon  the  summons  of  the  President. 

Tuesday,  July  1, 1783.—  On  the  report  of  a  committee  consisting  of 
Mr.  Hamilton,  Mr.  Ellsworth,  and  Mr.  Bland,  to  whom  was  referred  a 
motion  of  Mr.  Hamilton — 

Resolved,  That  Major-General  Howe  be  directed  to  march  such  part  of  the  force 
under  his  command,  as  he  shall  judge  necessary  to  the  State  of  Pennsylvania,  in 
order  that  immediate  measures  may  be  taken  to  confine  and  bring  to  trial  all  such 
persons  belonging  to  the  army  as  have  been  principally  active  in  the  late  mutiny, 
to  disarm  the  remainder,  and  to  examine  fully  into  all  the  circumstances  relating 
thereto. 

That  in  the  execution  of  the  foregoing  resolution,  if  any  matters  shall  arise  which 
may  concern  the  civil  jurisdiction,  or  in  which  its  aid  may  be  necessary,  application 
be  made  for  the  same  to  the  executive  authority  of  the  State. 

That  the  executive  of  Pennsylvania  be  informed  of  the  foregoing  resolutions,  and 
requested  to  afford  their  assistance  whensoever  the  same  shall  be  required. 

The  committee,  consisting  of  Mr.  Hamilton,  Mr.  Ellsworth,  and  Mr. 
Peters,  to  whom  were  referred  a  letter  of  the  17th  of  June,  from  Col. 
R.  Butler,  at  Lancaster,  and  sundry  papers  communicated  to  Congress 
by  the  executive  council  of  Pennsylvania,  through  their  delegates, 
having  on  the  19th  of  June  made  a  verbal  report,  and  on  the  20th  of 
the  same  month,  a  report  in  writing,  and  the  written  report  being  on 
the  30th  recommitted  that  they  might  amend  it  by  adding  thereto  their 
verbal  report,  and  the  report  being  this  day  brought  in  with  the 
amendment: 

Ordered,  That  it  be  entered  on  the  journal. 
74986—09 3 


32  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

The  report  is  as  follows: 

The  committee  to  whom  were  referred  the  letters  and  papers  communicated  to 
Congress  by  the  executive  council  of  Pennsylvania,  through  their  delegates,  report: 

That  they  had  a  conference  yesterday,  as  directed,  with  the  supreme  executive 
council,  in  which,  in  the  first  instance,  the  propriety  of  calling  out  a  detachment  of 
militia  to  intercept  the  mutineers  on  their  march  from  Lancaster,  was  proposed  to 
the  council,  suggesting  the  danger  of  their  being  suffered  with  impunity  to  join  the 
troops  in  the  barracks,  who  a  few  days  before  had  manifested  a  dangerous  spirit  by 
an  insolent  and  threatening  message  sent  to  Congress  in  the  name  of  a  board  of  ser- 
geants, and  who,  it  was  apprehended,  would  be  ready  to  make  common  cause  with 
those  on  their  march  for  mutinous  purposes. 

That  the  council  having  shown  a  reluctance  to  call  out  any  part  of  the  militia, 
expressing  an  opinion  that  they  would  not  be  willing  to  act,  till  some  outrage  should 
have  been  committed  by  the  troops;  there  appeared  to  the  committee  no  alternative 
but  to  endeavor  to  dissuade  the  mutineers  from  coming  to  town,  and  if  they  failed 
in  that  attempt,  to  make  use  of  expedients  to  prevent  the  troops  in  the  barracks 
from  joining  in  any  excesses,  and  to  induce  the  detachment  from  Lancaster  to  return 
to  that  place.  That  in  this  view,  and  that  at  their  desire,  the  assistant  secretary  at 
war  met  the  detachment  then  on  its  march  to  the  city,  and  endeavored  to  engage 
them  to  return  to  the  former  place,  urging  the  considerations  contained  in  the 
annexed  instructions  to  him,  but  the  said  detachment  persisted  in  their  intention  of 
coming  to  this  city,  and  arrived  here  this  morning.  That  upon  conferring  with  the 
superintendent  of  finance,  they  find  there  is  a  probability  that  the  paymaster- 
general,  to  whom  the  settlement  of  the  accounts  of  the  Army  has  been  committed, 
and  who,  having  all  the  documents  in  his  possession,  can  alone  execute  the  business 
with  propriety,  will  shortly  arrive  from  the  Army,  and  will  immediately  enter  upon 
a  settlement  with  the  troops  in  this  State;  that  in  the  meantime  measures  will  be 
taken  to  prepare  the  business  for  a  final  adjustment. 

That  there  will  immediately  be  sent  to  Lancaster  a  sum  of  money  to  be  paid  to  the 
troops  on  account  of  the  month's  pay  heretofore  directed  to  be  advanced  to  them, 
the  payment  of  which  has  hitherto  been  delayed  by  particular  circumstances, 
together  with  notes  for  three  months'  pay,  intended  to  be  advanced  to  the  men  when 
furloughed.  That  they  have  desired  this  information  to  be  transmitted  to  the  com- 
manding officer  here,  and  at  Lancaster,  with  this  declaration,  that  the  corps  sta- 
tioned at  Lancaster,  including  the  detachment,  can  only  be  settled  with  or  paid  at 
that  place. 

THE   INSTRUCTIONS   TO    MAJOR   JACKSON. 

SIR:  Information  having  been  received  that  a  detachment  of  about  eighty  muti- 
neers are  on  their  way  from  Lancaster  to  this  place,  you  will  please  proceed  to  meet 
them,  and  to  endeavor  by  every  prudent  method  to  engage  them  to  return  to  the 
post  they  have  left.  You  will  inform  them  of  the  orders  that  have  been  given,  per- 
mitting them  to  remain  in  service  till  their  accounts  shall  have  been  settled,  if  they 
prefer  it  to  being  furloughed,  and  of  the  allowance  of  pay  which  has  been  made  to 
the  Army  at  large,  and  in  which  they  are  to  be  included.  You  will  represent  to 
them  that  their  accounts  can  not  be  settled  without  their  officers,  whom  they  have 
left  behind  them  at  Lancaster.  You  will  represent  to  them  with  coolness  but 
energy  the  impropriety  of  such  irregular  proceedings,  and  the  danger  they  will  run 
by  persisting  in  an  improper  conduct.-  You  will  assure  them  of  the  best  intentions 
in  Congress  to  do  them  justice,  and  of  the  absurdity  of  their  expecting  to  procure  it 
more  effectually  by  intemperate  proceedings.  You  will  point  out  to  them  the 
tendency  which  such  proceedings  may  have  to  raise  the  resentments  of  their  country, 
and  to  indispose  it  to  take  effectual  measures  for  their  relief.  In  short,  you  will 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  33 

Urge  every  consideration  in  your  power  to  induce  them  to  return,  at  the  same  time 
avoiding  whatever  may  tend  to  irritate.  If  they  persist  in  coming  to  town,  you  will 
give  the  earliest  notice  to  us  of  their  progress  and  disposition.  Should  they  want 
provisions,  you  will  assure  them  of  a  supply  if  they  will  remain  where  they  are, 
which  you  are  to  endeavor  to  persuade  them  to  do  in  preference  to  coming  to  town. 
I  am,  sir,  your  most  obedient  servant, 

A.  HAMILTON, 
In  behalf  of  the  Committee 
Major  JACKSON,  Assistant  Secretary  at  War. 
PHILADELPHIA,  June  19,  11183. 

The  committee,  consisting  of  Mr.  Hamilton  and  Mr.  Ellsworth, 
appointed  on  the  21st  June  to  confer  with  the  supreme  executive 
council  of  Pennsylvania,  ,on  the  practicability  of  taking  effectual  meas- 
ures to  support  the  public  authority,  having  delivered  in  a  report: 

Ordered,  That  it  be  entered  on  the  journal. 

The  report  is  as  follows : 

The  committee  appointed  to  confer  with  the  supreme  executive  council  of  Penn- 
sylvania, on  the  practicability  of  taking  effectual  measures  to  support  the  public 
authority,  in  consequence  of  the  disorderly  and  menacing  appearance  of  a  body  of 
armed  soldiers  surrounding  the  place  where  Congress  were  assembled,  on  Saturday, 
the  21st  instant,  beg  leave  to  report: 

That  they  had  a  conference  the  morning  following  with  the  supreme  executive 
council,  agreeably  to  the  intention  of  Congress,  and  having  communicated  their  res- 
olution on  that  subject,  informed  the  council  that  Congress  considered  the  proceed- 
ing on  which  that  resolution  was  founded,  of  so  serious  a  nature,  as  to  render  palli- 
atives improper,  and  to  require  that  vigorous  measures  should  be  taken  to  put  a  stop 
to  the  further  progress  of  the  evil,  and  to  compel  submission  on  the  part  of  the 
offenders.  That  in  this  view  they  had  thought  it  expedient  to  declare  to  the  execu- 
tive of  the  State  in  which  they  reside,  the  necessity  of  taking  effectual  measures  for 
supporting  the  public  authority.  That  though  they  had  declined  a  specification 
of  the  measures  which  they  would  deem  effectual,  it  was  their  sense  that  a  number 
of  the  militia  would  be  immediately  called  out,  sufficient  to  suppress  the  revolt. 
That  Congress,  unwilling  to  expose  the  United  States  to  a  repetition  of  the  insult, 
had  suspended  their  ordinary  deliberations  in  this  city,  till  proper  steps  could  be 
taken  to  provide  against  the  possibility  of  it. 

The  council,  after  some  conversation,  informed  the  committee,  that  they  would 
wish,  previous  to  a  determination,  to  ascertain  the  state  and  disposition  of  the 
militia,  and  to  consult  the  officers  for  that  purpose. 

The  day  following  the  committee  waited  upon  the  council  for  their  final  resolu- 
tion, having  previously  presented  a  letter  addressed  to  his  excellency  the  President, 
of  which  a  copy  is  annexed,  requesting  the  determination  of  the  council  in  writing. 

The  council  declined  a  written  answer,  alleging  that  it  had  been  unusual  on  similar 
occasions;  that  they  were  unwilling  to  do  anything  which  might  appear  an  innova- 
tion in  the  manner  of  conducting  conferences  between  their  body  and  committees  of 
Congress,  adding,  however,  that  they  were  ready  to  give  their  answer  in  writing,  if 
Congress  should  request  it.  They  then  proceeded  to  a  verbal  answer,  in  substance 
as  follows: 

That  the  council  had  a  high  respect  for  the  representative  sovereignty  of  the 
United  States,  and  were  disposed  to  do  everything  in  their  power  to  support  its 
dignity.  That  they  regretted  the  insult  which  had  happened,  with  this  additional 
motive  of  sensibility,  that  they  had  themselves  had  a  principal  share  in  it.  That 


34  GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

they  had  consulted  a  number  of  well-informed  officers  of  the  militia,  and  found  that 
nothing  in  the  present  state  of  things  was  to  be  expected  from  that  quarter.  That 
the  militia  of  the  city  in  general  were  not  only  ill  provided  for  service,  but  disinclined 
to  act  upon  the  present  occasion.  That  the  council  did  not  believe  any  exertions 
were  to  be  looked  for  from  them,  except  in  case  of  further  outrage  and  actual  vio- 
lence to  person  or  property.  That  in  such  case  a  respectable  body  of  citizens  would 
arm  for  the  security  of  their  property  and  of  the  public  peace;  but  it  was  to  be 
doubted  what  measure  of  outrage  would  produce  this  effect,  and  in  particular,  it  wa* 
not  to  be  expected  merely  from  a  repetition  of  the  insult  which  had  happened. 

The  council  observed  that  they  thought  it  their  duty  to  communicate  their  expec- 
tations with  candor,  and  passed  from  the  subject  of  the  practicability  of  vigorous 
measures  to  the  policy  of  them.  They  stated,  that  General  St.  Clair,  with  the  appro- 
bation of  several  members  of  Congress  and  of  council,  had,  by  a  declaration  in 
writing,  permitted  the  mutineers  to  choose  a  committee  of  commissioned  officers  to 
represent  their  grievances  to  council,  and  had  authorized  them  to  expect  that  a  con- 
ference would  be  allowed  for  that  purpose.  That  it  was  said  the  mutineers  began 
to  be  convinced  of  their  error  and  were  preparing  submissions.  That  from  the  steps 
which  had  been  taken  the  business  seemed  to  be  in  a  train  of  negotiation,  and  that 
it  merited  consideration,  how  far  it  would  be  prudent  to  terminate  the  matter  in  that 
way  rather  than  employ  coercive  means. 

The  committee  remarked,  with  respect  to  the  scruple  about  giving  an  answer  in 
writing,  that  they  could  not  forbear  differing  in  opinion  as  to  its  propriety.  That 
nothing  was  more  common  than  written  communications  between  executives  of  the 
different  States  and  the  civil  and  military  officers  acting  under  the  authority  of  the 
United  States;  that  for  a  much  stronger  reason  there  was  a  propriety  in  this  mode 
of  transacting  business  between  the  council  and  a  committee  of  the  body  of  Con- 
gress. That,  indeed,  it  would  be  conformable  to  the  most  obvious  and  customary 
rules  of  proceeding,  and  that  the  importance  of  the  present  occasion  made  it  desira- 
ble to  give  every  transaction  the  greatest  precision. 

With  respect  to  the  practicability  of  employing  the  militia,  the  committee  observed 
that  this  was  a  point  of  which  the  council  was  alone  competent  to  judge.  That  the 
duty  of  the  committee  was  performed  in  explicitly  signifying  the  expectations  of 
Congress. 

And  with  respect  to  the  policy  of  coercion  the  comjnittee  remarked  that  the 
measures  taken  by  Congress  clearly  indicated  their  opinion,  that  the  excesses  of  the 
mutineers  had  passed  the  bounds  within  which  a  spirit  of  compromise  might  consist 
with  the  dignity  and  even  the  safety  of  government.  That  impunity  for  what  had 
happened  might  encourage  to  more  flagrant  proceedings,  invite  others  to  follow  the 
example,  and  extend  the  mischief.  That  the  passiveness  of  conduct  observed  toward 
the  detachment  which  had  mutinied  at  Lancaster,  and  come  to  the  city  in  defiance 
of  their  officers,  had,  no  doubt,  led  to  the  subsequent  violences.  That  these  consid- 
erations had  determined  Congress  to  adopt  decisive  measures.  That  besides  the 
application  to  the  State  in  which  they  reside,  for  its  immediate  support,  they  had 
not  neglected  other  means  of  ultimately  executing  their  purpose,  but  had  directed 
the  commander  in  chief  to  march  a  detachment  of  troops  towards  the  city.  That 
whatever  moderation  it  might  be  prudent  to  exercise  towrard  the  mutineers  when 
they  were  once  in  the  power  of  government,  it  was  necessary,  in  the  first  instance, 
to  place  them  in  that  situation.  That  Congress  would  probably  continue  to  pursue 
this  object  unless  it  should  be  superseded  by  unequivocal  demonstrations  of  sub- 
mission on  the  part  of  the  mutineers.  That  they  had  hitherto  given  no  satisfactory 
evidence  of  this  disposition,  having  lately  presented  the  officers  they  had  chosen  to 
represent  their  grievances  with  a  formal  commission  in  writing,  enjoining  them,  if 
necessary,  to  use  compulsory  means  for  redress,  and  menacing  them  with  death  in 
case  of  their  failing  to  execute  their  views. 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  35 

(Jnder  this  state  of  things  the  committee  could  not  forbear  suggesting  to  the 
council  that  it  would  be  expedient  for  them  so  to  qualify  the  reception  which  they 
should  think  proper  to  give  to  any  propositions  made  by  the  mutineers  as  not  to 
create  embarrassment,  should  Congress  continue  to  act  on  the  principle  of  coercion. 

The  committee,  finding  that  there  was  no  satisfactory  ground  to  expect  prompt 
and  adequate  exertions  on  the  part  of  the  executive  of  this  State  for  supporting  the 
public  authority,  were  bound  by  the  resolution  under  which  they  acted  to  advise 
the  President  to  summon  Congress  to  assemble  at  Princeton  or  Trenton  on  Thursday, 
the  26th  instant. 

Willing,  however,  to  protract  the  departure  of  Congress  as  long  as  they  could  be 
justified  in  doing  it,  still  hoping  that  further  information  would  produce  more  deci- 
sive measures  on  the  part  of  the  council,  and  desirous  of  seeing  what  complexion  the 
intimated  submissions  would  assume,  they  ventured  to  defer  advising  the  removal 
till  the  afternoon  of  the  day  following  that  on  which  the  answer  of  the  council  was 
given.  But  having  then  received  no  further  communications  from  the  council,  and 
having  learnt  from  General  St.  Clair  that  the  submissions  proposed  to  be  offered 
by  the  mutineers,  through  the  officers  they  had  chosen  to  represent  them,  were  not 
of  a  nature  sufficiently  explicit  to  be  accepted  or  relied  on.  That  they  would  be 
accompanied  by  new  demands  to  which  it  would  be  improper  to  listen;  that  the 
officers  themselves  composing  the  committee  had  shown  a  mysterious  reluctance  to 
inform  General  St.  Clair  of  their  proceedings — had  refused,  in  the  first  instance,  to 
do  it,  and  had  afterwards  only  yielded  to  a  peremptory  demand  on  his  part.  The 
committee  could  no  longer  think  themselves  at  liberty  to  delay  their  advice  for  an 
adjournment,  which  they  this  day  accordingly  gave,  persuaded  at  the  same  time 
that  it  was  necessary  to  impress  the  mutineers  with  a  conviction  that  extremities 
would  be  used  against  them  before  they  would  be  induced  to  resolve  on  a  final  and 
unreserved  submission. 

PHILADELPHIA,  June  24th,  1788. 

The  letter  to  his  excellency  the  president  of  the  supreme  executive 
council  of  Pennsylvania: 

SIR:  We  have  the  honor  to  enclose  for  your  excellency  and  the  council  a  copy  of 
the  resolutions  communicated  in  our  conference  yesterday.  Having  then  fully 
entered  into  all  the  explanations  which  were  necessary  on  the  subject,  we  shall  not 
trouble  your  excellency  with  a  recapitulation;  but  as  the  object  is  of  a  delicate  and 
important  nature,  we  think  it  our  duty  to  request  the  determination  of  the  council 
in  writing. 

We  have  the  honor  to  be,  with  perfect  respect,  your  excellency's  most  obedient 
servants. 

PHILADELPHIA,  June  28,  1783. 

Wednesday,  July  2,  1783. — A  letter  of  the  24th  of  June,  from  his 
excellency  "W.  Livingston,  governor  of  the  State  of  New  Jersey,  was 
read,  whereupon  it  was — 

Resolved,  That  the  president  inform  his  excellency,  the  governor  of  New  Jersey, 
that  Congress  entertain  a  high  sense  of  the  spirit  and  attachment  of  the  citizens  of 
New  Jersey  to  the  Federal  Union,  and  of  the  sentiments  expressed  by  his  excel- 
lency; and  are  happy  that  events  have  rendered  the  call  of  the  citizens  into  service 
unnecessary. 

An  address  of  the  governors  and  masters  of  the  college  was  read, 
offering  to  Congress  the  use  of  the  hall,  library  room,  and  every  other 


36  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

convenience  that  the  college  in  its  present  situation  can  afford;  where- 
upon it  was — 

Resolved,  That  the  President  inform  the  governors  and  masters  of  the  college  that 
Congress  entertain  a  proper  sense  of  their  obliging  offer,  and  accept  the  use  of  such 
parts  of  the  college  as  are  immediately  necessary  for  their  sessions,  and  for  the  officers 
attending  them  during  their  stay  at  Princeton. 

Resolutions  were  also  passed  by  the  inhabitants  of  Trenton,  Prince- 
ton, and  Newark,  and  their  vicinities,  to  support  order  and  good 
government,  which  received  the  approbation  of  Congress. 

Monday,  July  28,  1783. — An  address  from  the  citizens  of  Philadel- 
phia, and  the  liberties  thereof,  having  been  received  and  read  it  was — 

Resolved,  That  the  President  inform  the  citizens  of  Philadelphia,  and  its  liberties, 
in  answer  to  their  respectful  and  affectionate  address,  that  the  United  States,  in 
Congress  assembled,  have  great  satisfaction  in  reviewing  the  spirited  and  patriotic 
exertions  which  have  been  made  by  the  government  and  citizens  of  Pennsylvania,  in 
the  course  of  the  late  glorious  war;  and  that  they  are  highly  pleased  with  the  reso- 
lution, expressed  by  the  citizens  of  Philadelphia,  to  aid  in  all  measures  which  may 
have  a  tendency  to  support  the  national  honor  and  dignity. 

Friday,  August  1, 1783.  —  A  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Read,  of  South 
Carolina: 

That  on  the  eighth  of  August  instant,  the  President  shall  adjourn  Congress  to 
meet  at  Philadelphia  on  the  twelfth  of  August  instant,  there  to  continue  until  the 
last  Monday  in  October  next,  at  which  time  the  President  shall  adjourn  Congress  to 
meet  at  Annapolis  on  the  Friday  following,  unless  Congress  shall,  before  that  time, 
have  determined  otherwise. 

And  upon  the  question  whether  the  words  which  follow  "twelfth" 
shall  stand,  one  State  voted  in  the  affirmative,  three  in  the  negative, 
four  were  divided,  and  five  were  not  represented;  so  that  the  words  of 
limitation  were  stricken  out,  and  the  further  consideration  of  the 
question  postponed  to  the  6th. 

Wednesday,  August  13,  1783. — Agreeable  to  the  order  of  the  day, 
Congress  took  into  consideration  a  motion  made  by  Mr.  Howell,  of 
Rhode  Island,  seconded  b}^  Mr.  Bland,  of  Virginia,  in  words  following: 

Resolved,  That  on  the  15th  instant,  the  President  adjourn  Congress  to  meet  at 
Philadelphia  on  the  21st  instant. 

A  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Read,  of  South  Carolina,  seconded  by 
Mr.  Carroll,  of  -Maryland,  to  postpone  the  consideration  of  the  fore- 
going motion,  in  order  to  take  up  the  following: 

Wheseas  the  resolution  of  Saturday,  the  21st  day  of  June  last,  enabling  the  Presi- 
dent to  summon  Congress  to  meet  at  Trenton  or  Princeton,  on  Thursday  then  next 
following,  had  for  its  object,  that  further  and  more  effectual  measures  might  be  taken 
for  suppressing  the  then  existing  revolt  of  certain  troops  of  the  Pennsylvania  line,  and 
maintaining  the  dignity  and  authority  of  the  United  States:  and  whereas  it  is  no 
longer  found  necessary  or  expedient  that  Congress  should  continue  at  Princeton, 

Resolved,  That  on  Friday,  the  15th  instant,  the  President  do  adjourn  Congress  to 
meet  on  Monday  next,  the  21st,  at  the  city  of  Philadelphia;  and  that  on  the  second 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  37 

Monday  in  October  next,  the  President  do  in  like  manner  adjourn  Congress,  to  meet 
on  the  Monday  following,  at  Annapolis,  in  the  State  of  Maryland,  unless  Congress 
shall  in  the  meantime  order  otherwise. 

On  the  question  of  postponing,  the  States  voting  in  the  affirmative 
were  Pennsylvania,  Maryland,  and  South  Carolina;  the  negative  were 
Massachusetts,  Rhode  Island,  Connecticut,  New  Jersey,  and  Virginia; 
divided,  New  York  and  North  Carolina;  not  represented,  New  Hamp- 
shire, Delaware,  and  Georgia.  So  the  question  was  lost. 

On  motion  of  the  delegates  of  Pennsylvania — 

Ordered,  That  the  further  consideration  of  the  original  motion  be  postponed,  in 
order  that  the  following  declaration  made  by  one  of  the  delegates  from  Pennsylvania 
this  morning,  in  his  place,  be  entered  on  the  Journal,  viz: 

"The  delegates  of  Pennsylvania  are  authorized  by  the  president  and  council  of 
that  State  to  declare  in  the  most  respectful  terms  to  Congress  that  their  return  to 
Philadelphia  is  sincerely  desired  by  the  president  and  council,  as  an  event  which 
would  give  them  the  greatest  satisfaction." 

The  consideration  of  the  original  motion  was  again  resumed,  and 
after  further  debate  an  adjournment  was  called  for  and  agreed  to. 

On  the  next  day  a  motion  for  general  postponement  of  the  question 
was  lost;  and  upon  the  original  motion  of  Mr.  Howell,  to  adjourn  to 
Philadelphia,  the  affirmative  votes  were  Pennsylvania  and  Maryland; 
the  negative  were  Massachusetts,  Connecticut,  New  York,  New  Jersey, 
Virginia,  and  South  Carolina;  divided,  North  Carolina;  not  repre- 
sented, New  Hampshire,  Rhode  Island,  Delaware,  and  Georgia.  So 
the  question  was  lost. 

Monday,  September  1,  1783. — The  delegates  for  the  State  of  Penn- 
sylvania laid  before  Congress  sundry  resolutions  of  the  general  assem- 
bly of  that  State,  which  were  read  and  ordered  to  be  entered  on  the 
Journal,  as  follows: 

State  of  Pennsylvania,  in  general  assembly,  Friday,  August  29,  1783,  a.  m. 

The  report  of  the  committee  appointed  to  consider  of  the  most  eligible  means  for 
the  accommodation  of  Congress,  should  that  honorable  body  determine  to  reside 
within  this  State,  read  27th  instant,  was  read  the  second  time:  Whereupon, 

Resolved  unanimously,  That  until  Congress  shall  determine  upon  the  place  of  their 
permanent  residence  it  would  be  highly  agreeable  to  this  house  if  that  honorable 
body  should  deem  it  expedient  to  return  to  and  continue  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia; 
in  which  case  they  offer  to  Congress  the  different  apartments  in  the  statehouse  and 
adjacent  buildings  which  they  formerly  occupied  for  the  purpose  of  transacting  the 
national  business  therein. 

Resolved  unanimously,  That  this  house  will  take  effectual  measures  to  enable  the 
executive  of  the  State  to  afford  speedy  and  adequate  support  and  protection  to  the 
honor  and  dignity  of  the  United  States  in  Congress,  and  the  persons  of  those  com- 
posing the  Supreme  Council  of  the  nation  assembled  in  this  city. 

Resolved  unanimously,  That  as  this  house  is  sincerely  disposed  to  render  the  per- 
manent residence  of  Congress  in  this  State,  commodious  and  agreeable  to  that  honor- 
able body,  the  delegates  of  this  State  be  instructed  to  request  that  Congress  will  be 
pleased  to  define  what  jurisdiction  they  deem  necessary  to  be  vested  in  them  in  the 
place  where  they  shall  permanently  reside. 


38  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

Friday,  September  5,  1783. — On  motion  of  Mr.  McHenry,  of  Mary- 
land, seconded  by  Mr.  Lee,  of  Virginia — 

Resolved,  That  Friday  next  be  assigned  to  decide  on  the  place  proper  for  a  tempo- 
rary residence  of  Congress. 

(It  does  not  appear  that  Congress  met  on  Friday,  the  12th  of  Sep- 
tember, 1783.) 

Monday,  September  22, 1783. — Congress  took  into  consideration  the 
report  of  a  committee,  consisting  of  Mr.  Duane,  of  New  York;  Mr. 
Read,  of  South  Carolina;  Mr.  McHenry,  of  Maryland;  Mr.  Hunting- 
ton,  of  Connecticut;  Mr.  Peters,  of  Virginia;  Mr.  Wilson,  of  Penn- 
sylvania, and  Mr.  Madison,  of  Virginia,  appointed  to  consider  what 
jurisdiction  may  be  proper  for  Congress  in  the  place  of  their  perma- 
nent residence;  whereupon — 

Ordered,     That  the  said  report  be  referred  to  a  committee  of  the  whole  house. 
Resolved,  That  on  Thursday  next  Congress  be  resolved  into  a  committee  of  the 
whole  to  take  into  consideration  the  above  report. 

Thursday,  September  25,  1783. — According  to  order,  the  House  was 
resolved  into  a  confmittee  of  the  whole  to  take  into  consideration  the 
report  of  the  committee  appointed  to  consider  what  jurisdiction  may 
be  proper  for  Congress  in  the  place  of  their  permanent  residence. 
Mr.  Carroll,  of  Maryland,  was  elected  to  the  chair.  After  some  time 
the  President  resumed  the  chair,  and  Mr.  Carroll  reported  that  the 
Committee  of  the  Whole  had  taken  into  consideration  the  report 
referred  to  them,  and  made  some  progress  therein,  but,  not  having 
come  to  a  conclusion,  desire  leave  to  sit  again  to-morrow. 

Ordered,  That  leave  be  granted. 

(It  does  not  appear  from  the  Journal  that  this  committee  of  the 
whole  ever  sat  again.) 

Monday,  October  6, 1783. — The  order  of  the  day  being  called  for  and 
read,  to  take  into  consideration  the  proposition  of  several  States 
respecting  a  place  for  the  permanent  residence  of  Congress,  a  motion 
was  made  by  Mr.  Gerry,  of  Massachusetts,  seconded  by  Mr.  Hoi  ten, 
of  Massachusetts,  that  Congress  resolve  itself  into  a  committee  of  the 
whole  to  take  into  consideration  the  propositions  of  the  several  States 
from  New  York  to  Virginia,  inclusive,  respecting  a  place  for  the  per- 
manent residence  of  Congress. 

Question  put;  passed  in  the  negative. 

A  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Gerry,  seconded  by  Mr.  Foster,  of  New 
Hampshire,  to  postpone  the  order  of  the  day. 

This  motion  was  lost;  Massachusetts,  Rhode  Island,  and  Delaware 
only  voting  in  the  affirmative,  and  ten  States  being  represented. 

A  motion  to  postpone  the  subject  to  the  last  Monday  of  the  month 
was  also  lost;  Massachusetts  and  Rhode  Island  only  voting  in  the 
affirmative.  It  was  then — 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  39 

Resolved,  That  the  question  be  taken,  in  which  State  buildings  shall  be  provided 
and  erected  for  the  residence  of  Congress;  beginning  with  New  Hampshire,  and  pro- 
ceeding in  the  order  in  which  they  stand. 

The  question  upon  each  State  was  passed  in  the  negative,  no  State 
having  received  more  than  4:  votes,  and  New  Jersey  and  Maryland 
having  each  received  that  number. 

Resolved,  That  the  fixing  on  a  place  for  providing  and  erecting  buildings  for  the 
residence  of  Congress  be  an  order  of  the  day  for  to-morrow. 

Tuesday,  October  7,  1783.— The  order  of  the  day  being  called  for,  a 
motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Gerry,  of  Massachusetts,  seconded  by  Mr. 
Ho  well,  of  Rhode  Island- 
That  buildings  for  the  use  of  Congress  be  erected  on  the  banks  of  the  Delaware, 
near  Trenton,  or  of  Potomac,  near  Georgetown,  provided  a  suitable  district  can  be 
procured  on  one  of  the  rivers  as  aforesaid  for  a  Federal  town,  and  the  right  of  soil 
and  an  exclusive  or  such  other  jurisdiction  as  Congress  may  direct  shall  be  vested 
in  the  United  States. 

A  motion  by  Mr.  Duane,  seconded  by  Mr.  Holton,  to  add  "the 
Hudson"  was  negatived. 

This  motion  having  been  amended  so  as  to  read:  ''That  buildings 
for  the  use  of  Congress  be  erected  on  or  near  the  banks  of  the  Delaware 
or  of  the  Potomac,  provided  a  suitable  district,"  etc.  (as  in  the  origi- 
nal motion),  was  agreed  to  without  a  call  for  the  yeas  and  nays,  after 
an  ineffectual  attempt  had  been  made  by  the  Maryland  delegates  to 
postpone  the  motion  in  order  to  take  into  consideration  a  proposition 
to  accept  the  offer  made  by  the  legislature  of  Maryland,  by  their  act 
of  — ,  for  the  residence  of  Congress.  Upon  the  question  of  post- 
ponement for  that  purpose,  Maryland  alone  voted  in  the  affirmative. 
It  was  then — 

Resolved,  That  buildings  for  the  use  of  Congress  be  erected  on  or  near  the  banks  of 
the  Delaware,  provided  a  suitable  district,  etc. 

(As  in  the  original  motion.) 

The  States  voting  on  this  resolution  in  the  affirmative  were  Massa- 
chusetts, Rhode  Island,  Connecticut,  New  York,  New  Jersey,  Penn- 
sylvania, and  Delaware;  those  voting  in  the  negative  were  Maryland, 
Virginia,  North  Carolina,  and  South  Carolina;  not  represented,  New 
Hampshire  and  Georgia. 

A  motion,  made  by  Mr.  Bedford,  of  Delaware,  seconded  by  Mr. 
Tilton,  of  Delaware,  that  the  buildings  should  be  erected  in  the  State 
of  Delaware,  near  Wilmington,  was  negatived,  Delaware,  Maryland, 
and  South  Carolina  only  voting  in  the  affirmative.  But  it  was — 

Resolved,  That  the  place  011  the  Delaware  for  erecting  buildings  for  the  use  of 
Congress  be  near  the  falls. 

Resolved,  That  a  committee  of  five  be  appointed  to  repair  to  the  falls  of  the  Dela- 
ware to  view  the  situation  of  the  country  in  its  neighborhood  and  report  a  proper 
district  for  carrying  into  effect  the  preceding  resolution.  The  members,  Mr.  Gerry, 
Mr.  S.  Huntington,  Mr.  Peters,  Mr.  Duane,  Mr.  Clarke. 


40  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

Resolved,  That  it  be  the  order  of  the  day  for  to-morrow  to  consider  of  the  tempo- 
rary residence  of  Congress. 

Wednesday,  October  8,  1783. — A  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  William- 
son, of  North  Carolina,  seconded  by  Mr.  Read,  of  South  Carolina — 

To  consider  the  resolution  of  yesterday,  by  which  the  residence  of  Congress  is  to 
be  fixed  near  the  falls  of  the  Delaware,  in  order  to  fix  on  some  other  place  that  shall 
be  more  central,  more  favorable  to  the  Union,  and  shall  approach  nearer  to  that 
justice  which  is  due  to  the  Southern  States. 

This  motion  was  negatived;  Delaware,  Maryland,  Virginia,  North 
Carolina,  and  South  Carolina  voted  in  the  affirmative;  but,  as  it 
required  7  votes  to  carry  a  question  affirmatively,  the  motion  was 
lost,  although  there  were  only  6  negative  votes.  New  Hampshire 
and  Georgia  were  not  represented. 

Friday,  October  10,  1783. — The  order  of  the  day  being  called  for, 
it  was — 

Resolved,  That  for  the  more  convenient  transaction  of  the  business  of  the  United 
States  and  accommodation  of  Congress,  it  is  expedient  for  them  to  adjourn  from 
their  present  residence. 

New  York  and  all  the  States  south  of  New  York  voted  in  the  affirma- 
tive, except  Georgia,  which  was  not  represented. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Williamson,  of  North  Carolina, 
seconded  by  Mr.  Peters,  of  Pennsylvania — 

That  on  the  last  Thursday  of  this  month  the  President  adjourn  Congress,  to  meet 
at  Philadelphia  on  the  next  Saturday,  there  to  sit,  for  the  dispatch  of  public  business, 
till  the  first  Monday  in  June  next,  at  which  time  the  President  is  hereby  empowered 
and  directed  to  adjourn  Congress,  to  meet  at  Trenton  on  the  Wednesday  following. 

Mr.  Duane  moved  to  strike  out  "Philadelphia"  and  insert  in  its 
place  "Trenton,"  and  to  strike  out  all  the  words  after  "business'." 
This  amendment  was  rejected,  Massachusetts,  Rhode  Island,  Connecti- 
cut, New  York,  and  New  Jersey  voting  in  the  affirmative. 

Mr.  Williamson's  motion  was  then  rejected,  New  York,  Pennsyl- 
vania, Delaware,  Virginia,  and  North  Carolina  having  voted  in  the 

affirmative. 

% 

Saturday,  October  11,  1783. — The  order  of  the  day  being  called  for, 
a  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Ellery,  of  Rhode  Island,  seconded  \>j  Mr. 
Holten,  of  Massachusetts — 

That  the  President  of  Congress  be,  and  he  is  hereby,  authorized  and  directed  to 
adjourn  Congress  on  the  22d,  to  meet  at  Annapolis,  in  the  State  of  Maryland,  on  the 
31st  of  October  instant,  there  to  sit  for  the  dispatch  of  public  business  till  the  first 
Monday  in  June  next,  at  which  time  the  President  is  hereby  empowered  and  directed 
to  adjourn  Congress  to  meet  at  Trenton  on  the  Wednesday  following. 

This  motion  having  been  amended  by  striking  out  the  words  "there 
to  sit,"  etc.,  and  all  the  following  words  to  the  end,  and  by  inserting 
the  words  "for  the  place  of  their  temporary  residence,"  was  lost: 
Massachusetts,  Rhode  Island,  Connecticut,  Delaware,  Maryland,  and 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  41 

North  Carolina  voting  in  the  affirmative;  South  Carolina  was  divided, 
and  New  Hampshire  and  Georgia  were  not  represented. 

Monday,  October  13,  1783. — The  order  of  the  day  being  called  for, 
a  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Mercer,  of  Virginia,  seconded  by  Mr.  Lee, 
of  Virginia,  that  Congress  will,  on  the  15th  instant,  adjourn  to  meet 
at  the  city  of  Williamsburg,  in  the  State  of  Virginia,  on  the  80th 
instant,  there  to  sit  for  the  dispatch  of  public  business. 

A  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Howell,  of  Rhode  Island,  seconded  by 
Mr.  Ellery,  to  strike  out  the  words  "there  to  sit  for  the  dispatch  of 
public  business,"  and  in  lieu  thereof  insert  "for  the  place  of  their 
temporary  residence."  This  amendment  was  not  carried.  Massachu- 
setts, Rhode  Island,  New  York,  New  Jersey,  Pennsylvania,  and  Mary- 
land voted  in  the  affirmative;  Connecticut  and  North  Carolina  were 
divided;  New  Hampshire,  Delaware,  South  Carolina,  and  Georgia 
were  not  represented;  Virginia  voted  in  the  negative. 

The  motion  of  Mr.  Mercer  was  lost,  Virginia  alone  voting  in  the 
affirmative. 

Friday,  October  17,  1783. — A  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Gerry,  of 
Massachusetts,  seconded  by  Mr.  Lee,  of  Virginia^  in  the  words  fol- 
lowing: 

Whereas  the  resolutions  of  Congress,  of  the  7th  instant,  to  erect  buildings  for 
their  use  at  *>r  near  the  falls  of  the  Delaware,  are  not  satisfactory  to  a  respectable  part 
of  the  United  States,  five  of  which,  on  the  8th  instant,  voted  for  the  reconsideration 
of  the  said  resolutions;  and  whereas  Congress  have  no  prospect  of  a  general  assent 
to  any  one  place  for  their  residence,  and  there  ia  every  reason  to  expect  that  the 
providing  buildings  for  the  alternate  residence  of  Congress  in  two  places  will  be 
productive  of  the  most  salutary  effects,  by  securing  the  mutual  confidence  and  affec- 
tions of  the  States,  and  preserving  the  Federal  balance  of  power:  it  is  therefore, 
resolved,  That  buildings  be  likewise  erected  for  the  use  of  Congress,  at  or  near  the 
lower  falls  of  Potomac,  or  Georgetown;  provided  a  suitable  district  on  the  banks  of 
the  river  can  be  procured  for  a  Federal  town,  and  the  right  of  soil  and  an  exclusive 
jurisdiction,  or  such  other  as  Congress  may  direct,  shall  be  vested  in  the  United  States. 

Whereupon  a  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Clarke,  of  New  Jersey, 
seconded  by  Mr.  Peters,  of  Pennsylvania,  as  follows: 

Whereas  the  motion  now  before  the  House,  made  by  the  honorable  mover  from 
Massachusetts,  appears  to  involve  in  it  such  important  consequences  to  the  Union  as 
to  require  a  special  and  deliberate  investigation,  unconnected  with  any  other  subject, 
and  ought  not  be  determined  upon  a  motion  immediately  taken  up  without  pre- 
vious notice  thereof  given  to  the  States,  as  was  the  case  in  fixing  a  single  Federal 
town;  therefore  resolved,  That  the  said  motion  be  postponed  to  the  first  Monday  in 
April  next,  and  copies  thereof  be  transmitted  to  the  executives  of  the  several  States. 

Mr.  Clarke's  resolution  was  lost,  New  York,  New  Jersey,  and  Penn- 
sylvania voting  in  favor  of  it. 

The  consideration  of  the  main  question  was  postponed  till  Wednes- 
day. 

/Saturday,  October  18,  1783. — A  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  McHenry, 
of  Maryland,  seconded  by  Mr.  Mercer,  of  Virginia,  tc  reconsider  the 


42  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

resolution  "that  the  consideration  of  the  motion  made  by  Mr.  Gerry 
be  postponed  till  Wednesday."  When  the  question  was  about  to  be 
put,  the  determination  thereof  was  postponed  by  the  State  of  New 
Jersey. 

Monday,  October  20,  1783, — On  the  question  to  reconsider  the  reso- 
lution postponing  the  consideration  of  Mr.  Gerry's  motion  to  Wednes- 
day next,  it  was  resolved  in  the  affirmative,  New  York  alone  voting 
in  the  negative,  and  New  Hampshire,  New  Jersey,  Pennsylvania, 
Delaware,  and  Georgia  not  being  represented. 

On  the  motion  that  the  consideration  of  Mr.  Gerry's  motion  be 
postponed  to  Wednesdaj'  next,  the  question  was  lost. 

Mr.  Gerry's  motion  then  being  taken  into  consideration,  he  moved 
to  amend  it  b}T  adding  thereto — 

and  that  until  the  buildings  to  be  erected  on  the  banks  of  the  Delaware  ana  Poto- 
mac shall  be  prepared  for  the  reception  of  Congress,  their  residence  shall  be  alter- 
nately at  equal  periods  of  not  more  than  one  year  and  not  less  than  six  months  in 
Trenton  and  Annapolis;  and  the  President  is  hereby  authorized  and  directed  to 
adjourn  Congress  on  the  10th  of  November  next,  to  meet  at  Annapolis  on  the  25th 
day  of  the  same  month  for  the  dispatch  of  public  business. 

On  motion,  the  words  "  of  not  more  than  one  year  and  not  less  than 
six  months "  were  stricken  out.  But  Congress  refused  to  strike  out 
the  words  "  and  Potomac.''  "  alternately  at  equal  periods,"  "  and  An- 
napolis," "  at  Annapolis  ;"  New  York  alone  voting  in  favor  of  the 
motion. 

The  amendment  of  Mr.  Gerry,  after  being  so  amended,  was  lost,  six 
States  only  voting  in  its  favor,  viz,  Massachusetts,  Connecticut,  Mary- 
land, Virginia,  North  Carolina,  and  South  Carolina.  New  York  alone 
voted  in  the  negative,  the  other  States  being  divided  or  not  represented. 

Tuesday,  October  21, 1783. — The  amendment  offered  by  Mr.  Gerry— 
on  the  preceding  day  and  lost — was  in  substance  renewed  by  Mr.  Ellery, 
who  bad  voted  against  it,  and  was  now  carried  by  the  same  votes,  with 
the  addition  of  Rhode  Island,  which  on  the  former  vote  had  been 
divided.  The  whole  resolution  of  Mr.  Gerry  was  then  adopted  by  the 
same  votes,  viz,  Massachusetts!  Rhode  Island,  Connecticut,  Maryland, 
Virginia,  North  Carolina,  and  South  Carolina  voted  in  the  affirmative, 
New  York  alone  in  the  negative;  the  other  States  were  not  represented. 
The  resolution  as  passed  was  in  this  form: 

Whereas  there  is  reason  to  expect  that  the  providing  buildings  for  the  alternate 
residence  of  Congress  in  two  places,  will  be  productive  of  the  most  salutary  effects, 
by  securing  the  mutual  confidence  and  affections  of  the  States. 

Resolved,  That  buildings  be  likewise  erected  for  the  use  of  Congress,  at  or  near  the 
lower  falls  of  Potomac  or  Georgetown;  provided  a  suitable  district  on  the  banks  of 
the  river  can  be  procured  for  a  Federal  town,  and  the  right  of  soil,  and  an  exclusive 
jurisdiction,  or  such  other  as  Congress  may  direct,  shall  be  vested  in  the  United 
States;  and  that  until  the  buildings  to  be  erected  on  the  banks  of  the  Delaware  and 
Potomac  shall  be  prepared  for  the  reception  of  Congress,  their  residence  shall  be 
alternately  at  equal  periods  of  not  more  than  one  year,  and  not  less  than  six  months, 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  43 

ji  Trenton  and  Annapolis;  and  the  President  id  hereby  authorized  and  directed  to 
adjourn  Co'ngress  on  the  12th  day  of  November  next,  to  meet  at  Annapolis  on  the 
26th  day  of  the  same  month,  for  the  dispatch  of  public  business. 

Thursday,  October  30,  1783.— 

Resolved,  That  in  case  a  President  shall  not  be  chosen  on  or  before  the  12th  day  of 
November  next,  the  Secretary  adjourn  Congress  on  the  day,  to  meet  at  Annapolis  on 
the  26th  of  the  said  month,  according  to  the  resolution  of  the  20th  (2188)  instant. 

Seven  States  voted  in  the  affirmative;  three,  viz,  New  York,  New 
Jersey,  and  Pennsylvania,  in  the  negative;  New  Hampshire,  Delaware, 
and  Georgia  were  not  represented. 

A  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Lee,  of  Virginia,  seconded  by  Mr.  Holten, 
of  Massachusetts,  that  a  committee  be  appointed  to  repair  to  the  lower 
falls  of  the  Potomac,  to  view  the  situation  of  the  country  in  the  vicinity 
of  the  same,  and  report  a  proper  district  for  carrying  into  effect  the 
resolution  of  the  21st  of  October. 

Whereupon  a  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Ho  well,  of  Rhode  Island, 
seconded  by  Mr.  Carroll,  of  Maryland,  to  amend  the  foregoing  motion 
by  adding — 

And  that  the  committee  appointed  on  the  7th  day  of  October,  instant,  to  report 
the  most  suitable  place  for  erecting  buildings  for  the  accommodation  of  Congress  near 
the  falls  of  the  Delaware,  be  directed  to  report  as  soon  as  may  be. 

which  was  carried  by  the  votes  of  the  same  seven  States,  as  was  also 
Mr.  Lee's  motion  so  amended,  in  the  following  form,  viz: 

Resolved,  That  a  committee  be  appointed  to  repair  to  the  lower  falls  of  Potomac, 
to  view  the  situation  of  the  country  in  the  vicinity  of  the  same,  and  report  a  proper 
district  for  carrying  into  effect  the  resolution  of  the  21st  of  October;  and  that  the 
committee  appointed  on  the  7th  of  October  to  report  the  most  suitable  place  for 
erecting  buildings  for  the  accommodation  of  Congress  near  the  falls  of  the  Delaware, 
be  directed  to  report  as  soon  as  may  be.  The  members,  Mr.  Hawkins,  of  North 
Carolina;  Mr.  Gerry,  of  Massachusetts;  Mr.  Carroll,  of  Maryland;  Mr.  Mercer,  of 
Virginia,  and  Mr.  Williamson,  of  North  Carolina. 

It  was  also  resolved  (by  the  same  votes) — 

That  the  President  transmit  to  the  executives  of  New  Jersey,  Pennsylvania,  Mary- 
land, and  Virginia  copies  of  the  acts  of  Congress  of  the  7th  instant,  respecting 
buildings  to  be  erected  for  a  Federal  town  on  the  banks  of  the  Delaware;  and  of  the 
acts  of  the  21st  instant,  respecting  buildings  to  be  erected  on  the  banks  of  Potoinac 
for  a  second  Federal  town,  and  the  adjournment  of  Congress  to  Annapolis;  and  that 
copies  be  also  transmitted  to  the  several  other  States  in  the  Union. 

Monday,  November  3,  1783.— 

Resolved,  That  the  Chairman,  in  the  absence  of  the  President,  be,  and  he  is  hereby, 
empowered  and  directed  to  adjourn  Congress  on  the  6th  instant,  to  meet  at  Annapolis 
on  the  26th,  agreeable  to  the  resolution  of  the  21st  of  October  last. 

Tuesday,  November  J^tJi,  1783.— 

Resolved,  That  the  resolution,  passed  yesterday,  empowering  the  Chairman  to 
adjourn  Congress  on  the  6th,  be  reconsidered  and  altered  to  the  4th. 

Resolved,  That  this  Congress  be,  and  it  is  hereby  adjourned  to  meet  at  Annapolis 
on  the  26th  of  the  present  month. 


44  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

Wednesday,  April  1J},  1784.. — The  delegates  of  the  State  pf  Rhode 
Island  and  Providence  Plantations  having  informed  Congress  that  the 
legislature  of  said  State,  at  their  session  in  February  last  passed  the 
following  resolution,  to  wit: 

Resolved,  That  the  delegates  of  this  State  be,  and  they  are  hereby,  instructed  to  use 
their  influence  to  obtain  a  recess  of  Congress  as  soon  as  the  national  business  will 
possibly  admit. 

It  is  further  voted  that  the  delegates  of  this  State  request  that  honorable  body  to 
adjourn  and  convene  at  Rhode  Island  in  the  course  of  the  next  year,  or  as  soon  as 
may  be  convenient;  and  that  Congress  be  informed  that  if  the  aforesaid  request  shall 
be  acceded  to,  this  State  will  prepare  suitable  buildings  for  their  accommodation. 

And  thereupon  moved— 

That  on  the  26th  day  of  May  next,  the  President  adjourn  this  Congress  until  the 
26th  day  of  October  next,  then  to  meet  at  Newport,  in  the  State  of  Rhode  Island  and 
Providence  Plantations;  and,  if  a  sufficient  number  of  members  to  form  a  house 
should  not  then  meet,  that  all  the  business  before  this  Congress  unfinished  at  the 
time  of  said  adjournment  be  referred  to  the  United  States  in  Congress,  who  shall  be 
assembled  at  said  Newport  on  the  first  Monday  in  November  next. 

A  motion  was  then  made  ~by  Mr.  Jefferson,  of  Virginia,  seconded  by 
Mr.  Hardy,  of  Virginia,  to  strike  out  the  words  "then  to  meet  at 
Newport,  in  the  State  of  Rhode  Island  and  Providence  Plantations," 
and  afterwards  the  words  "at  said  Newport,"  which  were  accordingly 
stricken  out,  Rhode  Island  alone  voting  in  favor  of  retaining  them. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Montgomery,  of  Pennsjdvania, 
seconded  by  Mr.  Hand,  of  Pennsylvania,  in  lieu  of  the  words  struck 
out  to  insert  "to  meet  at  Philadelphia,"  which  motion  was  lost, 
Pennsylvania  alone  voting  in  its  favor. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Monroe,  of  Virginia,  seconded  by 
Mr.  McHenry,  of  Maryland,  to  postpone  the  further  consideration  of 
the  motion  under  debate,  in  order  to  take  up  the  following: 

That  the  States  of  Maryland  and  Virginia  be  informed,  that  provided  they  will 

advance  the  United  States pounds,  for  the  erecting  the  necessary  buildings 

for  the  reception  of  Congress  at  or  near  Georgetown,  at  the  falls  of  Potomac,  it  shall 

be  allowed  them  in  the  requisition  made  on  them  for  the  year ,  by  the  United 

States  in  Congress  assembled; 

which  passed  in  the  negative,  Maryland,  Virginia,  and  South  Carolina 
voting  in  the  affirmative,  Rhode  Island  and  North  Carolina  being 
divided,  Delaware  and  Georgia  not  being  represented. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Jefferson,  seconded  by  Mr.  Mon- 
roe, in  lieu  of  the  words  struck  out,  to  insert  "Alexandria;"  which 
motion  was  lost,  Virginia  alone  voting  in  its  favor. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Beatty,  of  New  Jersey,  seconded 
by  Mr.  Sherman,  of  Connecticut,  in  lieu  of  the  words  struck  out,  to 
insert  "to  meet  at  Trenton,  in  the  State  of  New  Jersey,  agreeably  to 
their  act  of  the  21st  of  October  last,"  which  was  carried,  Maryland, 
Virginia,  and  South  Carolina  voting  in  the  negative,  North  Carolina 
divided,  Delaware  and  Georgia  not  represented. 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  45 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Jefferson  for  a  further  amendment, 
by  adding,  immediately  after  the  words  inserted,  these  words,  to  wit: 
"Provided,  A  committee  of  the  States  shall  have  been  previously  con- 
stituted." On  this  amendment  the  previous  question  was  moved  by 
the  State  of  Massachusetts,  seconded  by  the  State  of  New  Jersey;  and 
on  the  question  to  agree  to  the  previous  question  it  was  lost;  ayes, 
5;  noes,  5;  New  York  divided. 

Monday,  April  26,  1784- — Present  eleven  States. 

A  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Howell,  seconded  by  Mr.  Gerry— 

that  the  President  be,  and  he  is  hereby,  authorized  and  directed  to  adjourn  Congress 
on  the  third  day  of  June  next,  to  meet  on  the  thirtieth  of  October  next  at  Trenton, 
for  the  dispatch  of  public  business;  and  that  a  committee  of  the  States  shall  be 
appointed  to  sit  in  the  recess  of  Congress. 

A  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  McHenry,  seconded  by  Mr.  Spaight,  of 
North  Carolina,  to  postpone  the  consideration  of  the  foregoing  motion 
in  order  to  take  into  consideration  the  report  of  a  committee  "to 
whom  was  referred  a  report  on  the  powers  with  which  a  committee  of 
the  States  should  be  vested  during  the  recess  of  Congress,  and  a  motion 
on  the  same  subject." 

The  motion  to  postpone  was  lost,  Pennsylvania  and  all  the  States 
east  of  Pennsylvania  voting  in  the.  negative;  Maryland  and  all  south 
of  Maryland  voting  in  the  affirmative.  Delaware  and  Georgia  were 
not  represented. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Williamson,  of  North  Carolina, 
seconded  by  Mr.  McHenry,  to  amend  the  motion  of  Mr.  Howell  by 
adding  thereto — 

Provided,  A  committee  of  the  States  shall  first  have  been  appointed  to  sit  in  the 
recess  of  Congress,  and  the  powers  defined  with  which  the  said  committee  shall  be 
vested,  according  to  the  tenth  of  the  Articles  of  Confederation. 

This  motion  was  also  negatived  by  the  same  vote. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  McHenry,  seconded  by  Mr.  Mer- 
cer, to  postpone  the  further  consideration  of  the  motion  under  debate 
in  order  to  take  up  the  following: 

That  as  soon  as  a  proper  place  shall  be  reported  by  the  committee  appointed  to 
view  and  report  a  proper  place  for  a  Federal  town  at  or  near  Georgetown,  on  the 
Potomac,  and  the  soil  and  jurisdiction  obtained  as  well  for  the  town  on  Potomac  as 
that  on  Delaware,  Congress  will  forthwith  proceed  to  erect  such  public  buildings  as 
may  be  necessary  for  their  sessions,  at  the  expense  of  the  United  States,  out  of  the 
common  treasury  thereof;  that  the  foundations  of  the  said  buildings  shall  be  laid  at 
the  same  time,  and  no  sum  of  money  appropriated  for  the  one,  unless  an  equal  sum 
be  appropriated  for  the  other. 

The  motion  to  postpone  for  the  purpose  aforesaid  was  lost,  Mary- 
land alone  voting  in  the  affirmative,  and  Virginia  and  South  Carolina 
being  divided.  Mr.  Jefferson  and  Mr.  Monroe  voted  in  the  negative. 


46  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Hardy,  of  Virginia,  and  seconded 
by  Mr.  Read,  of  South  Carolina,  to  postpone  the  consideration  of  the 
motion  under  debate,  in  order  to  take  up  the  following: 

Whereas  the  resolution  of  the  20th  of  October  last  provides  that  Congress  shall 
reside  at  Trenton  and  Annapolis,  alternately,  at  equal  periods  of  not  less  than  six 
months  or  more  than  twelve,  until  the  buildings  on  the  banks  of  Potomac  and  Del- 
aware be  ready  for  their  reception; 

And  whereas  the  delegates  from  Rhode  Island,  pursuant  to  instructions  from 
that  State,  have  moved  a  resolution  that  Congress  adjourn  to  Newport,  in  the  State 
of  Rhode  Island,  from  which  it  is  evidently  the  sense  of  that  State  that  the  resolu- 
tion for  two  Federal  towns  should  not  be  carried  into  effect; 

And  whereas  it  appears  to  be  the  sense  of  a  majority  of  the  States  in  Congress 
assembled,  by  a  motion  from  the  State  of  Connecticut  forbidding  the  committee 
appointed  to  view  the  ground  at  or  near  Georgetown  to  proceed  in  that  business 
until  the  further  order  of  Congress,  and  by  a  motion  for  allowing  the  States  of 

Maryland  and  Virginia  to  advance pounds  for  the  purpose  of  erecting  public 

buildings  at  or  near  Georgetown,  and  for  giving  them  credit  for  the  same  in  the 

requisition  of  year,  which  last  being  negatived,  amounts  to  a  virtual  repeal  of 

the  aforesaid  act;  and  as  it  will  be  expedient  to  fix  on  a  situation  the  most  central  to 
all  parts  of  the  Union  for  holding  the  sessions  of  Congress, 

Resolved,  That  Congress  hold  their  sessions  in  Annapolis,  in  the  State  of  Maryland, 
until  they  decide  on  some  place  for  their  permanent  residence  and  the  necessary 
public  buildings  be  erected  for  their  accommodation. 

On  this  motion  the  previous  question  was  moved  by  the  State  of 
Connecticut,  seconded  by  the  State  of  Rhcde  Island;  and  on  the  ques- 
tion to  agree  to  the  previous  question,  the  yeas  and  nays  being  required 
by  Mr.  Hard}7,  the  yeas  were,  New  Hampshire,  Massachusetts,  Rhode 
Island,  Connecticut,  New  York,  New  Jersey,  and  Pennsylvania;  nay, 
Maryland;  divided,  Virginia,  North  Carolina,  and  South  Carolina; 
not  represented,  Delaware  and  Georgia. 

So  it  was  resolved  in  the  affirmative,  and  the  motion  was  set  aside. 

The  original  motion  of  Mr.  Howell  was  then  carried,  Pennsylvania 
and  all  the  States  east  of  Pennsylvania  voting  in  the  affirmative; 
Maryland,  Virginia,  and  South  Carolina  in  the  negative;  North  Caro- 
lina divided,  and  Delaware  and  Georgia  not  represented.  So  it  was — 

Resolved,  That  the  President  be,  Mid  he  hereby  is,  authorized  and  directed  to 
adjourn  Congress  on  the  ?d  day  of  June  next,  to  meet  on  the  30th  of  October  next 
at  Trenton  for  the  dispatch  of  public  business;  and  that  a  committee  of  the  States 
shall  be  appointed  to  sit  in  the  recess  of  Congress. 

Thursday,  June  3,  1784- — The  President,  in  pursuance  of  the  act  of 
the  26th  of  April,  adjourned  Congress  to  meet  at  Trenton  on  the  80th 
of  October,  where  they  met  November  1. 

Friday,  December  10,  1784- — A  motion  being  made  by  the  State  of 
South  Carolina,  seconded  by  the  State  of  Pennsylvania,  "  that  for  the 
more  convenient  transaction  of  the  business  of  the  United  States  and 
accommodation  of  Congress  it  is  expedient  for  them  to  adjourn  from 
their  present  residence,"  the  determination  thereof  was  postponed  to 
the  next  day,  when  the  question  was  lost,  the  affirmative  votes  being 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  47 

Pennsylvania,  Delaware,  Virginia,  South  Carolina,  and  Georgia;  the 
negative,  Massachusetts,  New  York,  and  New  Jersey;  not  repre- 
sented, New  Hampshire,  Rhode  Island,  Connecticut,  Maryland,  and 
North  Carolina. 

Monday,  December  20,  1784. — On  motion  of  Mr.  Ho  well,  seconded 
by  Mr.  Jay,  of  New  York — 

Resolved,  That  it  is  expedient  the  Congress  proceed  to  take  measures  for  suitable 
buildings  to  be  erected  for  their  accommodation. 

Resolved  (by  nine  States),  That  a  sum  not  exceeding  $100,000  be  appropriated  for 
the  payment  of  the  expense  of  erecting  such  buildings,  provided  always  that  hotels 
or  dwelling  houses  for  the  members  of  Congress  representing  the  different  States 
shall  not  be  understood  as  included  in  the  above  appropriation. 

Resolved,  That  it  is  inexpedient  for  Congress  at  this  time  to  erect  public  buildings 
for  their  accommodation  at  more  than  one  place. 

Tuesday,  December  21,  1784-  — A  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Pinckney , 
of  South  Carolina,  seconded  by  Mr.  Jay,  that  it  is  expedient  Congress 
should  determine  on  a  place,  at  which  they  will  continue  to  sit  until 
proper  accommodations  in  a  Federal  town  shall  be  erected,  and  that 
the  subsisting  resolutions  respecting  the  alternate  temporary  residence 
of  Congress  at  Trenton  and  Annapolis,  be  repealed. 

A  motion  of  Mr.  Howell,  seconded  by  Mr.  Ellery,  to  strike  out 
the  words  "and  that  the  subsisting  resolutions,"  etc.,  to  the  end, 
the  question  being  taken  shall  those  words  stand,  it  was  decided  in  the 
negative  and  the  words  were  stricken  out.  The  affirmative  votes  were, 
New  York,  Virginia,  North  Carolina,  South  Carolina,  and  Georgia;  the 
negative,  Massachusetts,  Rhode  Island,  and  New  Jersey;  Pennsylvania 
was  divided,  and  New  Hampshire,  Connecticut,  Delaware,  and  Mary- 
land were  not  represented. 

The  resolution  being  further  amended  was  passed  thus: 

Resolved,  That  it  is  expedient  Congress  should  determine  on  a  place  at  which  they 
will  continue  to  sit  until  public  buildings  for  their  proper  accommodation  shall  be 
erected. 

Thursday,  December  23,  1784- — An  ordinance  for  carrying  into  exe- 
cution the  resolutions  of  the  20th  instant,  and  for  fixing  upon  a  place 
for  the  residence  of  Congress,  until  suitable  buildings  shall  be  erected 
for  their  accommodation,  being  moved  by  Mr.  Gerry,  seconded  by 
Mr.  Howell,  read  a  first  time,  and  taken  up  for  a  second  reading,  and 
the  following  paragraph  being  under  debate — 

That  for  this  purpose  three  commissioners  be  appointed  with  full  powers  to  lay  out 
a  district  of  not  less  than  two  nor  exceeding  three  miles  square,  on  the  banks  of 
either  side  of  the  Delaware,  not  lower  than  Lamberton,  nor  more  than  six  miles 
above  it,  for  a  Federal  town. 

A  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Hardy,  of  Virginia,  seconded  by 
Mr.  Monroe,  to  strike  out  the  words  "on  the  banks  of  either  side  of 
the  Delaware,  not  lower  than  Lamberton,  nor  more  than  6  miles  above 

74986—09 4 


48  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

it,"  and  in  lieu  thereof  to  insert,  "at  Georgetown,  on  the  Potomac." 
But  the  motion  was  lost,  Virginia  alone  voting  in  the  affirmative. 

Sundry  amendments  being  made,  when  the  paragraph  was  under 
debate,  viz: 

' '  That  on  the day  of next  Congress  stand  adjourned  to  meet  at  —    — , 

on  the day  of  —      —  following,  for  the  dispatch  of  public  business,  and  that 

the  sessions  of  Congress  be  held  at  the  place  last  mentioned  until  the  buildings  afore- 
said shall  be  ready  for  their  reception." 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Houston,  of  New  Jersey,  seconded 
by  Mr.  Howell,  to  strike  out  the  words,  "that  on  the  -  -  day  of 

-  next  Congress  stand  adjourned  to  meet  at  —      —  on  the  — 
day  of  -         -  following,  and  that  the  sessions  of  Congress  be  held  at 
the  place  last  mentioned,"  and  in  lieu  thereof  insert,  "and  that  Con- 
gress shall  continue  to  hold  their  sessions  at  Trenton,"  which  motion 
was  also  lost;  Rhode  Island  and  New  Jersey  only  voting  in  its  favor. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Hardy,  seconded  by  Mr.  Spaight, 
of  North  Carolina,  to  fill  up  the  blank  after  "meet  at"  with  the  word 
"Philadelphia,"  which  was  also  lost;  Pennsylvania,  Virginia,  North 
Carolina,  South  Carolina,  and  Georgia  voting  in  the  affirmative; 
Massachusetts,  Rhode  Island,  New  York,  and  New  Jersey  yf  the 
negative;  New  Hampshire,  Connecticut,  Delaware,  and  Maryland  not 
represented. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Ellery,  seconded  by  Mr.  Howell, 
to  fill  the  blank  with  the  words,  "city  of  Newport,  in  the  State  of 
Rhode  Island  and  Providence  Plantations,"  which  was  also  lost;  Rhode 
Island  alone  voting  for  it. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Howell,  seconded  by  Mr.  Spaight, 
to  fill  the  blank  with  "the  city  of  New  York,"  which  was  carried; 
Pennsylvania  alone  voting  in  the  negative,  Georgia  being  divided, 
and  New  Hampshire,  Connecticut,  Delaware,  and  Maryland  not 
represented. 

The  other  blanks  being  filled^  the  ordinance  was  read  the  third  time 
and  agreed  to,  as  follows: 

Be  it  ordained  by  the  United  States  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  resolutions  of  the 
20th  instant,  respecting  the  erecting  buildings  for  the  use  of  Congress,  be  carried  into 
effect  without  delay;  that  for  this  purpose  three  commissioners  be  appointed,  with 
full  power  to  lay  out  a  district  of  not  less  than  two  nor  exceeding  three  miles  square 
on  the  banks  of  either  side  of  the  Delaware,  not  more  than  eight  miles  above  or 
below  the  falls  thereof,  for  a  Federal  town;  that  they  be  authorized  to  purchase  the 
soil,  or  such  part  of  it  as  they  may  judge  necessary,  to  be  paid  in  proper  installments; 
to  enter  into  contracts  for  erecting  and  completing,  in  an  elegant  manner,  a  Federal 
house  for  the  accommodation  of  Congress,  and  for  executive  officers  thereof;  a  house 
for  the  use  of  the  President  of  Congress,  and  suitable  buildings  for  the  residence  of 
the  secretary  of  foreign  affairs,  secretary  at  war,  secretary  of  Congress,  secretary  of 
the  marine,  and  officers  of  the  Treasury;  that  the  said  commissioners  be  empowered 
to  draw  on  the  Treasury  of  the  United  States  for  a  sum  not  exceeding  one  hundred 
thousand  dollars  for  the  purpose  aforesaid;  that  in  choosing  a  situation  for  the 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  49 

buildings  due  regard  be  had  to  the  accommodation  of  the  States,  with  lots  for 
houses  for  the  use  of  their  delegates,  respectively;  that  on  the  24th  day  of  December 
instant,  Congress  stand  adjourned  to  meet  at  the  city  of  New  York  on  the  llth  day  of 
January  following,  for  the  despatch  of  public  business,  and  that  the  sessions  of 
Congress  be  held  at  the  place  last  mentioned  until  the  buildings  aforesaid  shall  be 
ready  for  their  reception.  Done,  etc. 

Friday,  December  %4,  J784-— 

Resolved,  That  Congress  will  proceed  to  the  election  of  commissioners,  for  carrying 
into  execution  the  purposes  mentioned  in  the  ordinance  of  yesterday,  on  the  13th  of 
January  next. 

Resolved,  That  the  President  transmit  to  the  executives  of  the -several  States  the 
ordinance  passed  yesterday,  and  that  it 'be  also  published. 

Resolved,  That  Congress  entertain  a  due  sense  of  the  attention  of  the  legislature  of 
the  State  of  New  Jersey  in  providing  accommodations  for  their  reception,  and  also 
of  the  exertions  of  the  inhabitants  of  Trenton  in  accomplishing  the  intentions  of 
their  legislature. 

On  motion  of  Mr.  King,  of  Massachusetts,  seconded  by  Mr.  Howell, 
Congress  came  to  the  following  resolution: 

The  delegates  of  Pennsylvania,  having  laid  before  Congress  the  resolves  of  their 
legislature  of  the  27th  of  November  last — 

Resolved,  That  Congress  entertain  a  due  sense  of  the  attention  of  the  Commonwealth 
of  Pennsylvania  in  offering  to  Congress  the  use  of  their  public  buildings  in  the  city 
of  Philadelphia  for  their  temporary  residence. 

Adjourned  to  meet  at  the  city  of  New  York  the  llth  of  January 
next. 

On  Thursday,  January  11,  1785,  Congress  met  at  New  York,  seven 
States  being  present,  but  did  not  on  that  day  proceed  to  the  election 
of  the  commissioners  under  the  ordinance  of  the  23d  of  December, 
1784,  agreeably  to  the  resolve  of  the  24th  of  December. 

Tuesday,  January  18,  1785.— 

Resolved,  That  the  mayor  and  corporation  of  the  city  of  New  York  be  informed 
that  Congress  entertain  a  just  sense  of  the  attention  which  they  have  manifested  to 
the  interest  of  the  Federal  Union  in  the  offer  they  have  made  of  such  of  the  public 
buildings  in  the  city  as  may  be  necessary  for  the  transaction  of  public  business,  and 
that  they  accept  of  the  several  apartments  in  the  city  hall,  the  whole  of  which 
(except  the  court  and  jury  rooms)  will  be  necessary  for  the  session  of  Congress  and 
the  accommodation  of  their  officers. 

Tuesday,  February  8,  1785. — The  order  of  the  day  being  called  to 
proceed  to  the  election  of  the  three  commissioners,  pursuant  to  the 
ordinance  of  the  23d  December,  1784, 

A  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Williamson,  of  North  Carolina,  seconded 
by  Mr.  Sitgreaves,  of  Pennsylvania,  to  postpone  the  order  of  the  day 
to  take  up  the  following: 

That  the  commissioners  who  may  be  appointed  in  pursuance  of  the  23d  December, 
1784,  be  instructed  to  examine  such  places  on  the  river  Delaware,  within  the  limits 
prescribed,  as  may  be  purchased,  and  such  as  they  may  judge  proper  for  the  site  of 
public  buildings;  to  cause  one  or  more  places  to  be  surveyed  on  each  side  of  the 
river,  and  report  to  Congress  the  situation  and  quantity  of  land  offered  them  for 


50  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

nale,  and  the  terms  on  which  the  several  tracts  may  be  purchased,  properly  authen- 
ticated by  the  different  proprietors. 

This  motion  was  lost,  North  Carolina  alone  voting  in  its  favor. 
A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  McHenry,  of  Maryland,  seconded 
by  Mr.  Foster,  of  New  Hampshire — 

that  Congress  do  not  proceed  to  the  appointment  of  commissioners,  to  carry  the 
ordinance  for  founding  the  said  town  into  effect,  till  the  delegates,  representing  the 
several  States,  have  time  to  consult,  in  a  matter  no  important  and  momentous,  the 
sense  of  their  constituents. 

This  motion,  was  decided  to  be  in  order,  but  Congress  adjourned 
without  taking  a  question  upon  it. 

Wednesday,  February  9,  1785. — The  order  of  the  day  being  called 
to  proceed  to  the  election  of  three  commissioners,  pursuant  to  the 
ordinance  of  23d  December,  1784,  the  same  was  postponed  till  to-mor- 
row by  the  State  of  Virginia. 

Thursday,  February  10,  1785. — A  motion  further  to  postpone  the 
order  of  the  day,  to  proceed  to  the  election  of  three  commissioners, 
etc.,  was  negatived,  Maryland  alone  voting  in  the  affirmative. 

Congress  proceeded  to  the  election  of  three  commissioners,  pursuant 
to  the  ordinance  of  the  23d  of  December,  1784,  and  the  ballots  being 
taken,  Philip  Schuyler,  esq.,  was  elected,  having  been  previous!}' 
nominated  by  Mr.  W.  Livingston,  of  New  York. 

Friday,  February  11,  1785.—  Congress  proceeded  to  the  election  of 
the  two  remaining  commissioners,  pursuant  to  the  ordinance  of  the 
23d  of  December,  1784,  and  the  ballots  being  taken,  Mr.  Philemon 
Dickenson  and  Mr.  Robert  Morris  were  elected,  the  former  having 
been  previously  nominated  by  Mr.  Stewart,  of  New  Jersey,  and  the 
latter  by  Mr.  Ellery,  of  Rhode  Island. 

Tuesday,  March  10,  1785.— A.  letter  of  the  3d,  from  Mr.  P.  Schuy- 
ler, was  read,  wherein  he  declines  the  office  of  commissioner  for  car- 
rjdng  into  effect  the  act  for  Federal  buildings. 

Friday,.  March  11,  1785.— 

Resolved,  That  Tuesday  next  be  assigned  for  the  election  of  a  commissioner  for 
carrying  into  execution  the  purposes  mentioned  in  the  ordinance  of  December  23, 
1784,  in  the  place  of  Philip  Schuyler,  esq.,  who  has  declined  to  accept  that  appoint- 
ment. 

A  motion  to  strike  out  "Tuesday"  and  insert  "the  first  Monda}r  in 
May"  was  lost,  Maryland  alone  voting  in  its  favor. 

Wednesday,  March  16,  1785. — Mr.  John  Brown,  nominated  by  Mr. 
Beatfy,  of  New  Jersey,  was  elected  commissioner  in  the  place  of  Mr. 
P.  Schuyler. 

The  Journals  of  Congress  do  not  show  that  any  further  proceedings 
were  had  under  the  ordinance  of  23d  December,  1784. 

On  Tuesday,  April  10,  1787,  Congress  having  continued  its  sessions 
in  New  York  ever  since  the  13th  of  January,  1785, 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  51 

A  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Kearney,  of  Delaware,  seconded  by  Mr. 
Blount,  of  North  Carolina: 

That  on  the  last  Friday  in  the  present  month  Congress  will  adjourn,  to  meet  on 
the  first  Monday  in  June  next  at  the  city  of  Philadelphia,  in  the  State  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, and  the  President  of  Congress  is  hereby  authorized  and  directed,  on  the  said 
last  Friday  in  the  present  month,  to  adjourn  Congress  to  the  said  first  Monday  in 
June  next  to  meet  in  the  city  of  Philadelphia,  in  the  State  of  Pennsylvania;  and 
that  the  secretary  of  Congress  and  the  heads  of  the  several  departments  take  order 
for  the  removal  of  the  books  and  papers  belonging  to  their  respective  offices  to  the 
said  city  of  Philadelphia. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Varnum,  of  Rhode  Island,  to 
amend  the  motion,  so  as  to  substitute  Newport  for  Philadelphia; 
which  motion  to  amend  was  lost,  Rhode  Island  alone  voting  in  the 
affirmative. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  King,  of  Massachusetts,  so  to  amend 
the  resolution  as  to  leave  it  a  simple  resolution  to  adjourn  on  the  last 
Friday  of  the  month,  till  the  first  Monday  in  June;  which  motion  was 
carried. 

Mr.  King  then  moved  to  strike  out  the  words,  "on  the  last  Friday 
of  the  present  month,"  and  when  the  question  was  about  to  be  put 
the  determination  was  postponed  by  the  State  of  Massachusetts  to  the 
next  day,  when  it  was  postponed  indefinitely. 

On  Thursday,  May  10, 1787,  a  motion  by  Mr.  Kearney,  of  Delaware, 
to  adjourn  on  the  16th,  to  meet  at  Philadelphia  on  the  second  Monday 
in  June,  was  decided  not  to  be  in  order,  because  contrary  to  the  ordi- 
nance of  the  23d  of  December,  1784,  which  enacted  that  the  sessions  of 
Congress  should  be  held  in  New  York  until  the  public  buildings  in  the 
Federal  town  should  be  ready  for  their  reception. 

Mr.  Kearney  then  renewed  his  motion  with  this  addition,  "Anything 
in  the  ordinance  of  the  23d  of  December,  1784,  contained,  to  the  con- 
trary notwithstanding." 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Lee,  of  Virginia,  seconded  by  Mr. 
Huger,  of  South  Carolina,  to  postpone  the  motion  before  the  House 
to  take  up  the  following,  viz: 

Whereas  the  convenient  and  due  administration  of  the  Government  of  the  United 
States  requires  that  a  permanent  situation  most  central  to  all  parts  of  the  Union  be 
established  for  holding  the  sessions  of  Congress. 

Resolved,  That  the  board  of  treasury  take  measures  for  erecting  the  necessary 
public  buildings,  for  the  accommodation  of  Congress,  at  Georgetown,  on  the  Potomac 
River,  so  soon  as  the  soil  and  jurisdiction  of  the  said  town  are  obtained,  and  that  on 
the  completion  of  the  said  buildings  that  Congress  adjourn  their  sessions  to  the  said 
Federal  town. 

Resolved,  That  the  States  of  Maryland  and  Virginia  be  allowed  a  credit  in  the 
requisition  of  1787,  or  in  the  arrearages  due  on  past  requisitions  for  such  sums  of 
money  which  they  may  respectively  furnish  toward  the  erection  of  the  said  buildings, 

This  motion  was  lost;  Massachusetts,  New  York,  Virginia,  and 
Georgia  voted  in  the  affirmative;  New  Jersey,  Pennsylvania,  Delaware, 


52  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

Maryland,  and  North  Carolina  in  the  negative;  New  Hampshire,  Con 
necticut,  Rhode  Island,  and  South  Carolina  not  represented. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Lee,  seconded  by  Mr.  Carringtqn, 
of  Virginia,  to  amend  the  motion  before  the  house  by  adding  the 
following  words;: 

That  the  board  of  treasury  take  order  for  the  payment  of  all  just  expenses  which 
the  officers  of  the  United  States  may  be  involved  in  by  the  adjournment  of  Congress 
before  the  expiration  of  the  year; 

which  motion  was  also  lost,  Massachusetts,  New  York,  and  Virginia 
voting  in  the  affirmative. 

An  unsuccessful  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Carrington,  of  Virginia, 
to  substitute  the  10th  and  30th  of  October  for  the  16th  of  May  and  the 
second  Monday  in  June;  but  Mr.  Dane,  of  Massachusetts,  prevailed 
in  a  motion  to  strike  out  the  second  Monday  in  June  next. 

Nothing  further  appears  to  have  been  done  upon  Mr.  Kearney's 
motion  of  the  10th  of  May,  1787. 

Monday,  July  28, 1788. — The  committee,  consisting  of  Mr.  Carring- 
ton, Mr.  Edwards,  Mr.  Baldwin,  Mr.  Otis,  and  Mr.  Tucker,  to  whom 
were  referred  the  acts  of  the  several  States  which  have  been  trans- 
mitted to  Congress,  ratifying  the  Constitution  for  the  United  States 
of  America,  having  reported  an  act  for  pufting  the  said  Constitution 
into  operation,  and  the  following  paragraph  having  been  debated  and 
amended  to  read  as  follows: 

That  the  first  Wednesday  in  January  next  be  the  day  for  appointing  electors  in 
the  several  States  which  have,  or  shall,  before  the  said  day  have  ratified  the  said 
Constitution;  that  the  first  Wednesday  in  February  next  be  the  day  for  the  electors 
to  assemble  in  their  respective  States  and  vote  for  a  President,  and  that  the  first 
Wednesday  in  March  next  be  the  time  and the  place  for  commencing  pro- 
ceedings under  the  said  Constitution; 

a  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Edwards,  of  Connecticut,  seconded  by  Mr. 
Williamson,  of  North  Carolina,  to  till  the  blank  with  "Philadelphia." 
This  motion  was  lost;  New  Hampshire,  Connecticut,  Pennsylvania, 
Maryland,  Virginia,  and  North  Carolina  voted  in  the  affirmative; 
Massachusetts,  New  York,  New  Jersey,  and  South  Carolina  in  the 
negative;  Delaware  and  Georgia  were  divided,  and  Rhode  Island  was 
not  represented. 

Wednesday,  July  30,  1788. — The  order  of  the  day  being  called  for, 
and  the  paragraph  which  was  under  debate  on  Monday  being  read,  a 
motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Dayton,  of  New  Jersey,  seconded  by  Mr. 
Huger,  of  South  Carolina,  to  fill  the  blank  with  the  words  ' '  the  city 
of  New  York,  in  the  State  of  New  York."  Thereupon  a  motion  was 
made  by  Mr.  Lee,  seconded  by  Mr.  Clarke,  of  New  Jersey,  in  lieu  of 
this,  to  amend  the  paragraph  so  that  the  last  clause  be  "and  at  such 
place  as  shall  hereafter  be  appointed  by  Congress." 

The  motion  of  Mr.  Lee  so  to  amend  it  was  lost,  Massachusetts, 
New  York,  New  Jersey,  and  South  Carolina  voting  in  the  affirmative; 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  53 

Connecticut,  Pennsylvania,  Delaware,  Maryland,  Virginia,  North  Car- 
olina, and  Georgia  in  the  negative;  New  Hampshire  being  divided  and 
Rhode  Island  not  being  represented. 

Monday,  August  4,  1788. — The  order  of  the  day  being  called,  and 
the  motion  renewed  by  Mr.  Dayton,  seconded  by  Mr.  Ross,  of  Mary- 
land, to  fill  the  blank  with  the  words  "city  of  New  York,  in  the  State 
of  New  York, "a  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Williamson, of  North  Caro- 
lina, seconded  by  Mr.  Seney,  of  Maryland,  to  postpone  the  motion, 
in  order  to  admit  a  motion  to  fill  the  blank  with  the  word  "'Lancaster," 
which  motion  was  lost;  Pennsylvania,  Delaware,  Maryland,  Virginia, 
North  Carolina,  and  Georgia  voting  in  the  affirmative,  and  the  other 
seven  States  in  the  negative. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Carrington,  seconded  by  Mr. 
Seney,  to  postpone  the  motion  for  New  York,  in  order  to  admit  "Bal- 
timore, in  the  State  of  Maryland,"  which  motion  to  postpone  was 
carried;  the  seven  Southern  States,  including  Pennsylvania,  voting  in 
the  affirmative,  and  the  six  Eastern  States  in  the  negative. 

The  motion  to  fill  the  blank  with  the  words  "the  town  of  Balti- 
more, in  the  State  of  Maryland,"  was  carried  by  the  same  majority. 

Tuesday,  August  5,  1788. — A  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Hamilton, 
of  New  York,  seconded  by  Mr.  Dane,  of  Massachusetts,  to  reconsider 
the  question  for  filling  the  blank  in  the  resolution  with  the  words, 
"the  town  of  Baltimore,  in  the  State  of  Maryland,"  which  motion  was 
lost  by  the  same  majority. 

Wednesday,  August  6, 1788. — The  order  of  the  day  being  called  for, 
and  the  act,  as  amended,  for  putting  the  Constitution  into  operation 
being  read  as  follows — 

Whereas  the  convention  assembled  in  Philadelphia,  pursuant  to  the  resolution  of 
Congress  of  the  21st  of  February,  1787,  did,  on  the  17th  of  September  in  the  saine  year, 
report  to  the  United  States,  in  Congress  assembled,  a  Constitution  for  the  people  of  the 
United  States,  whereupon  Congress,  on  the  28th  of  the  same  September,  did  resolve 
unanimously  that  the  said  report,  with  the  resolutions  and  letter  accompanying  the 
same,  be  transmitted  to  the  several  legislatures,  in  order  to  be  submitted  to  a  conven- 
tion of  delegates  chosen  in  each  State  by  the  people  thereof,  in  conformity  to  the 
resolves  of  the  convention  made  and  provided  in  that  case;  and  whereas  the  Con- 
stitution so  reported  .by  the  convention,  and  by  Congress  transmitted  to  the  several 
legislatures,  has  been  ratified  in  the  manner  therein  declared  to  be  sufficient  for  the 
establishment  of  the  same,  and  such  ratifications,  duly  authenticated,  have  been 
received  by  Congress,  and  are  filed  in  the  office  of  the  secretary:  Therefore, 

Resolved,  That  the  first  Wednesday  in  January  next  be  the  day  for  appointing  elect- 
ors in  the  several  States  which,  before  the  said  day,  shall  have  ratified  the  said  Con- 
stitution; that  the  first  Wednesday  in  February  next  be  the  day  for  the  electors  to 
assemble  in  their  respective  States  and  vote  for  a  President,  and  that  the  first  Wednes- 
day in  March  next  be  the  time,  and  the  town  of  Baltimore,  in  the  State  of  Mary- 
land, the  place  for  commencing  proceedings  under  the  said  Constitution — 

a  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Tucker,  of  South  Carolina,  seconded  by 
Mr.  Lee,  of  Virginia,  further  to  amend  the  act  by  striking  out  the 


54  GOVERNMENT    OP    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

words  "in  the  town  of  Baltimore,  in  the  State  of  Maryland,"  and 
inserting  as  follows: 

And  whereas  a  central  situation  would  be  most  eligible  for  the  sitting  of  the  Legis- 
lature of  the  United  States,  if  such  could  be  found  in  a  condition  to  furnish  in  due 
time  the  accommodations  necessary  for  facilitating  public  business,  and  at  the  same 
time  free  of  weighty  objections  which  might  render  it  improper  or  unlikely  to  be 
the  seat  of  government,  either  permanently  or  until  a  permanent  seat  can  be  agreed 
on;  and  wrhereas  the  most  effectual  means  of  obtaining  finally  the  establishment  of 
the  Federal  Government  in  a  convenient  central  situation  is  to  leave  the  subject  to 
the  deliberate  consideration  of  the  future  Congress,  uninfluenced  by  undue  attach- 
ment to  any  of  the  places  which  may  stand  in  competition  for  preference  on  so  inter- 
esting a  question,  and  unembarrassed  by  want  of  time  and  means  to  fix  on  and 
prepare  the  most  proper  place  for  this  purpose;  and  whereas  the  removal  of  the 
public  offices  must  be  attended  with  much  expense,  danger,  and  inconvenience, 
which  ought  not  to  be  incurred  but  with  a  well-founded  expectation  of  advantages 
that  may  fully  counterbalance  the  same;  and  whereas  no  such  advantages  can  be 
expected  from  a  removal  to  any  place  now  in  a  condition  to  receive  the  Federal 
Legislature;  and  whereas,  in  addition  to  the  before-mentioned  reasons,  unnecessary 
changes  of  the  seat  of  government  would  be  indicative  of  instability  in  the  national 
councils,  and  therefore  highly  injurious  to  the  interests  as  well  as  derogatory  to  the 
dignity  of  the  United  States:  Therefore, 

Resolved,  That  the  city  of  New  York,  in  the  State  of  New  York,  be  the  place  for 
commencing  proceedings  under  the  said  Constitution. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Williamson,  of  North  Carolina, 
seconded  by  Mr.  Read,  to  postpone  the  motion  before  the  House  in 
order  to  take  up  the  following: 

Whereas  it  is  proper  that  the  seat  of  the  new  Congress  and  of  the  National  Govern- 
ment should  be  placed  as  near  the  center  of  the  Union  as  may  consist  with  present 
accommodation,  in  order  that  its  influence  and  benefits  may  be  equally  felt  by  the 
great  body  of  citizens  throughout  the  United  States,  that  members  of  Congress  and 
other  persons  may  approach  it  with  equal  convenience  from  opposite  extremes,  and 
that  no  species  of  partial  favor  may  seem  to  have  been  extended  to  one  extreme 
rather  than  to  the  other;  and  whereas  the  present  residence  of  Congress  is  far  removed 
from  the  center  of  the  Union,  whether  population  or  distance  are  considered,  since 
the  new  Congress  is  to  consist  of  8  Senators  from  States  to  the  eastward  of  New  York, 
and  16  from  States  to  the  southward,  and  since  there  are  to  be  only  17  members 
in  the  House  of  Representatives  from  the  Eastern  States,  though  there  are  to  be 
42  members  from  Southern  States,  and  since  the  distance  to  the  seat  of  government 
in  the  extreme  Eastern  State  is  hardly  equal  to  one-third  of  the  distance  to  the  seat 
of  government  in  the  most  southerly  State;  and  whereas  it  is  to  be  desired  that  the 
new  Congress  may  be  convened  in  the  same  spirit  of  mutual  accommodation  which 
has  hitherto  appeared  in  all  deliberations  respecting  the  new  Government,  and  that 
proceedings  under  the  said  Government  may  commence  under  the  impressions  of 
mutual  confidence  without  that  general  irritation  and  loss  of  time  which  must  attend 
the  removal  from  an  improper  situation,  and  without  those  painful  apprehensions 
which  will  naturally  arise  from  a  measure  that  may  seem  to  have  originated  in  an 
undue  regard  to  local  considerations:  Therefore, 

Resolved,  That  the  seat  of  the  new  Congress  ought  to  be  in  some  place  to  the  south- 
ward of  New  York. 

This  motion  of  Mr.  Williamson  to  postpone,  for  the  purpose  afore- 
said, was  decided  in  the  negative,  the  six  Eastern  States  and  South 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTBICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  55 

Carolina  voting  against  it  and  the  other  six  Southern  States  in  its 
favor. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Carrington,  seconded  by  Mr.  Bing- 
ham,  of  Pennsylvania,  to  amend  the  amendment  by  striking  out  the 
words  "New  York,  in  the  State  of  New  Fork,"  and  in  lieu  thereof 
inserting  "Philadelphia;"  which  motion  was  lost,  the  same  States 
voting  in  the  negative  and  Georgia  being  divided. 

A  division  of  Mr.  Tucker's  resolution  was  then  called  for,  and  on 
the  question  to  agree  to  the  resolving  clause  it  was  decided  in  the 
affirmative. 

The  question  to  agree  to  the  preamble  was  also  agreed  to  by  the 
same  vote. 

Tuesday,  September  2,  1788. — A  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Clark,  of 
New  Jersey,  seconded  by  Mr.  Sedgwick,  of  Massachusetts,  in  the 
words  following,  viz: 

Whereas  the  convention,  assembled  in  Philadelphia,  pursuant  to  the  resolution  of 
Congress  of  the  21st  of  February,  1787,  did,  on  the  17th  day  of  September  in  the 
same  year,  report  to  the  United  States  in  Congress  assembled,  a  constitution  or  form 
of  government  for  the  people  of  the  United  States;  whereupon  Congress,  on  the  28th 
day  of  the  same  September,  did  resolve  unanimously  that  the  said  report,  with  the 
resolutions  and  letter  accompanying  the  same,  be  transmitted  to  the  several  legisla- 
tures, in  order  to  be  submitted  to  a  convention  of  delegates  chosen  in  each  State  by 
the  people  thereof,  in  conformity  to  the  resolves  of  the  convention  made  and  pro- 
vided in  that  case;  and  whereas  the  Constitution  so  reported  by  the  convention,  and 
by  Congress  transmitted  to  the  several  legislatures,  has  been  ratified  in  the  manner 
therein  declared  to  be  sufficient  for  the  establishment  of  the  same,  and  such  ratifica- 
tions, duly  authenticated,  have  been  received  by  Congress  and  are  filed  in  the  office 
of  the  Secretary  thereof:  Therefore, 

Resolved,  That  the  first  Wednesday  in  January  next  be  the  day  for  appointing 
electors  in  the  several  States  which  before  the  said  day  shall  have  ratified  the  said 
Constitution;  that  the  first  Wednesday  in  February  next  be  the  day  for  the  electors  to 
assemble  in  their  respective  States  to  vote  for  a  President;  and  that  the  first  Wednes- 
day in  March  next  be  the  time,  and  the  seat  of  the  Federal  Government  at  that  time 
the  place  for  commencing  proceedings  under  the  said  Constitution. 

This  motion  was  lost,  Massachusetts,  New  York,  New  Jersey,  and 
South  Carolina  voting  in  the  affirmative;  Pennsylvania,  Delaware, 
Maryland,  and  Virginia  in  the  negative;  Connecticut  and  Georgia 
being  divided,  and  New  Hampshire  not  represented. 

The  same  motion,  with  the  exception  of  the  clause  respecting  the 
place,  was  renewed  by  Mr.  Edwards,  of  Connecticut,  seconded  by  Mr. 
Sedgwick,  of  Massachusetts.  A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Irwine, 
of  Pennsylvania,  seconded  by  Mr.  Bingham,  of  Pennsylvania,  to 
amend  the  motion  before  the  House  by  inserting  after  the  word  "time" 
the  words  "and  that  Lancaster  be  the  place." 

Mr.  Irwine's  motion  was  lost,  Pennsylvania,  Delaware,  Maryland, 
and  Virginia,  voting  in  the  affirmative;  Massachusetts,  New  York, 
New  Jersey,  and  South  Carolina  in  the  negative;  Connecticut  and 


56  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

Georgia  divided;  New  Hampshire,  Rhode  Island,  and  North  Carolina 
not  represented. 

Wednesday,  September  3,  1788. — A  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Sem>y, 
seconded  by  ]Mr.  Ross,  of  Maryland,  to  amend  the  motion  of  Mr. 
Edwards  by  inserting  after  the  word  "time"  the  words  "and  that  the 
city  of  Annapolis,  in  the  State  of  Maryland,  be  the  place."  This 
question  was  also  lost,  Pennsylvania  and  Maryland  only  voting  in  the 
affirmative. 

Thursday,  September  4,  1788. — The  motion  made  by  Mr.  Edwards, 
seconded  by  Mr.  Sedgwick,  being  again  moved  and  read,  a  motion 
was  made  by  Mr.  Tucker,  seconded  by  Mr.  Huger,  that  the  same  be 
postponed  in  order  to  take  up  the  following,  viz: 

Whereas  after  long  deliberation  on  the  subject  of  the  new  Constitution,  so  far  as 
the  agency  of  Congress  is  required  to  give  it  effect,  there  appears  to  be  a  diversity  of 
sentiment  with  respect  to  the  place  for  commencing  proceedings  under  the  said  Con- 
stitution, which  may  prevent  a  speedy  and  definite  decision  thereon;  and 

Whereas  a  further  delay  of  the  other  essential  parts  of  this  business  might  be 
productive  of  much  national  inconvenience:  Therefore, 

Resolved,  That  the  first  Wednesday  in  January  next,  etc.  (as  in  the  former  reso- 
lution), and  that  the  first  Wednesday  in  March  next  be  the  time  for  commencing  pro- 
ceedings under  the  said  Constitution,  at  such  place  as  Congress  shall  hereafter  appoint, 
or,  failing  such  appointment,  at  the  place  which  shall,  immediately  before  the  last- 
mentioned  day,  be  the  seat  of  Congress. 

This  question  was  also  lost,  New  Hampshire,  Massachusetts,  Con- 
necticut, New  York,  New  Jersey,  and  South  Carolina  voting  in  the 
affirmative. 

The  question  was  then  taken  on  the  motion  of  Mr.  Edwards,  of  the 
2d  of  September,  and  Iost5 

Friday,  September  12,  1788. — A  motion  being  made  by  Mr.  Lee, 
seconded  by  Mr.  Oilman,  of  New  Hampshire,  in  the  words  following: 

Whereas  longer  delay  in  executing  the  previous  arrangements  necessary  to  put  into 
operation  the  Federal  Government  may  produce  national  injury, 

Resolved,  That  the  first  Wednesday  in  January  next,  etc.  (as  in  the  former  motions) , 
and  the  present  seat  of  Congress  be  the  p\ace  for  commencing  proceedings  under  the 
said  Constitution. 

A  motion  was  made  by  Mr.  Carrington,  seconded  by  Mr.  Madison, 
of  Virginia,  to  amend  the  proposition  by  striking  out  the  words  "and 
the  present  seat  of  Congress  be  the  place,"  and  by  adding: 

And  whereas  it  is  of  great  importance  that  a  government,  founded  on  the  princi- 
ples of  conciliation  and  impartial  regard  to  the  interests  and  accommodation  of  the 
several  parts  of  the  Union,  should  commence  in  a  spirit  corresponding  with  these 
principles,  and  under  every  circumstance  calculated  to  prevent  jealousies  in  one  part 
of  the  Union  of  undue  bias  in  the  public  councils  or  measures  towards  another  part; 
and  it  is  conceived  that  these  desirable  purposes  will  be  much  favored  by  the 
appointment  of  some  place  for  the  meeting  of  the  new  government  more  central  than 
the  present  seat  of  Congress,  and  which  will  at  the  same  time  be  more  likely  to 
obviate  disagreeable  and  injurious  discussions  concerning  the  place  most  fit  for  the 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  57 


seat  of  Federal  business",  until  a  permanent  seat  be  established  as  provided  for  by  the 
new  Constitution  — 

Resolved,  That  -  be  the  place  for  commencing  proceedings  under  the  new 
Constitution. 

This  motion  of  Mr.  Carrington  was  lost,  Pennsylvania,  Delaware, 
and  Virginia  only  voting  in  its  favor. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Kearney,  of  Delaware,  seconded 
by  Mr.  Mitchel,  of  Delaware,  to  strike  out  the  words  "and  the  pres- 
ent seat  of  Congress  the  place,"  and  on  the  question,  "  Shall  those 
words  stand?  "  it  was  resolved  in  the  affirmative,  Delaware  alone  voting 
in  the  negative,  and  all  the  States  excepting  Khode  Island,  Maryland, 
apd  North  Carolina  being  present. 

When  the  question  was  about  to  be  put  upon  the  resolution  of  Mr. 
Lee,  the  determination  thereof  was  postponed  till  the  next  day,  when 
the  resolution  passed  unanimously,  nine  States  voting  in  the  affirma- 
tive. The  absent  States  were  Rhode  Island,  Delaware,  Maryland,  and 
North  Carolina. 

So  it  was  resolved  in  the  affirmative,  as  follows: 

Whereas  the  Convention  assembled  in  Philadelphia,  pursuant  to  the  resolution  of 
Congress  of  the  21st  of  February,  1787,  did,  on  the  17th  of  September  of  the  same 
year,  report,  etc.  (see  the  whole  preamble  stated  in  Mr.  Clarke's  motion  of  the  2d 
of  September,  1788):  Therefore, 

Resolved,  That  the  first  Wednesday  in  January  next  be  the  day  for  appointing 
electors  in  the  several  States  which  before  the  said  day  shall  have  ratified  the  said 
Constitution;  that  the  first  Wednesday  in  February  next  be  the  day  for  the  electors 
to  assemble  in  their  respective  States  and  vote  for  a  President,  and  that  the  first 
Wednesday  of  March  next  be  the  time  and  the  present  seat  of  Congress  the  place 
for  commencing  the  proceedings  under  the  said  Constitution. 

Thus  ended  the  deliberations  of  the  old  Congress  respecting  the  seat 
of  the  Federal  Government. 

PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   CONGRESS    PROVIDED    FOR   BY    THE   CONSTITUTION. 

It  is  now  a  matter  of  history  that  the  proceedings  under  the  Consti- 
tution commenced  at  New  York  on  Wednesday,  the  4th  of  March, 
1789,  until  which  time  a  few  of  the  members  of  the  old  Congress 
attended  in  their  places  and  held  their  seats.  The  last  act  of  the  old 
Congress  was  passed  on  the  10th  of  October,  1788. 

On  the  7th  of  April,  1789,  New  York  appropriated  its  public  build- 
ings to  the  use  of  the  new  Congress. 

Friday,  May  15,  1789.  —  Mr.  White,  one  of  the  Representatives 
from  Virginia,  presented  to  the  House  a  resolve  of  the  legislature  of 
that  State,  of  the  27th  of  December,  1788,  offering  to  the  acceptance 
of  the  Federal  Government  10  miles  square  of  territory,  or  any  less 
quantity,  in  any  part  of  that  State  which  Congress  may  choose,  to  be 
occupied  and  possessed  by  the  United  States  as  the  seat  of  the  Federal 
Government. 

Read  and  ordered  to  lie  on  the  table. 


58  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

Saturday,  May  16,  1789. — Mr.  Seney,  one  of  the  Representatives  of 
Maryland,  presented  to  the  House  an  act  of  the  legislature  of  that 
State  offering  to  the  acceptance  of  Congress  10  miles  square  of  ter- 
ritory, in  any  part  of  the  said  State,  for  the  seat  of  the  Federal 
Government. 

Read  and  ordered  to  lie  on  the  table. 

Saturday,  August  ##,  1789. — The  several  memorials  of  the  inhab- 
itants of  Trenton,  in  the  State  of  New  Jersey,  and  of  the  boroughs  of 
Lancaster  and  York  Town,  in  the  State  of  Pennsylvania,  were  pre- 
sented to  the  House  and  Senate  and  read,  respectively  prajdng  that 
the  permanent  seat  of  Congress  may  be  established  at  the  same. 

Ordered  to  Jie  on  the  table. 

Thursday,  August  27,  1789. — Mr.  Thomas  Scott,  of  Pennsylvania, 
agreeably  to  notice,  moved  the  following  resolution: 

That  a  permanent  residence  ought  to  be  fixed  for  the  General  Government  of  the 
United  States  at  some  convenient  place  as  near  the  center  of  wealth,  population,  and 
extent  of  territory  as  may  be  consistent  with  convenience  to  the  navigation  of  the 
Atlantic  Ocean,  and  having  due  regard  to  the  particular  situation  of  the  western 
country. 

Made  the  order  for  Thursday,  the  3d  of  September. 

Mr.  Scott  observed  that  the  principle  of  union  in  which  we  are 
bound  is  the  principle  of  equal  and  reciprocal  justice.  The  question 
now  before  the  House  is  a  grand  link  in  the  chain  of  the  Federal  sys- 
tem. The  peace  of  the  United  States  depends  as  much  on  this  as  on 
any  other  question  which  can  come  before  Congress.  No  man  in  the 
western  country  ever  wished  anything  further  than  that  when  the 
central  line  between  the  northern  and  the  southern  extremities  was 
fixed,  Congress  should  establish  their  seat  as  far  back  on  this  line  as  the 
convenience  of  maritime  commerce  would  allow. 

Mr.  Livermore  said  that  the  idea  of  a  permanent  seat  is  not  itself 
strictly  true.  As  population  increases,  and  as  men  of  new  principles 
and  views  take  their  seats  in  Congress,  this  permanent  seat  may  be 
altered  at  pleasure.  It  is  certainly  wise  in  Congress  to  be  economical; 
it  is  always  found  a  very  expensive  thing  to  remove,  etc. 

Mr.  Jackson,  of  Georgia,  said  the  existence  of  the  Union  depends  on 
this  subject,  etc. 

Mr.  Michael  Jenifer  Stone,  of  Maryland,  observed  that  this  will  be 
a  very  important  business.  No  question  will  so  fully  try  the  temper 
of  this  body  as  the  present. 

Mr.  Ames,  of  Massachusetts,  said: 

I  believe  it  will  involve  as  many  passions  as  can  reside  in  the  human  heart.  Every 
principle  of  local  interest,  of  pride  and  honor,  and  of  even  patriotism  itself,  are 
engaged. 

Thursday,  Septembers,  1789. — In  Committee  of  the  Whole,  upon  Mr. 
Scott's  resolution,  Mr.  Goodhue,  of  Massachusetts,  in  debate,  said 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OV    COLUMBIA.  59 

that  "the  Eastern  and  Northern  members  had  made  up  their  minds  on 
the  subject,  and  were  of  opinion  that  on  the  eastern  banks  of  the 
Susquehanna  Congress  should  fix  its  permanent  residence,  and  that 
until  the  particular  spot  should  be  determined  upon  and  the  proper 
buildings  erected  the  seat  of  the  General  Government  should  be  at 
the  city  of  New  York."  He  then  introduced  a  resolution  to  that  effect. 
A  crowded  hall  and  galleries  testified  the  public  solicitude.  Several 
amendments  were  proposed  and  negatived,  but  one  moved  by  Mr. 
R.  B.  Lee,  of  Virginia,  for  substituting  "Potomac"  for  "Susque- 
hanna "  prolonged  the  debate  until  nearly  4  o'clock,  when  the  committee 
rose  without  taking  the  question,  and  had  leave  to  sit  again. 

Friday,  September  ^,  1789. — The  resolution  offered  by  Mr.  Goodhue 
on  the  3d  was  in  these  words: 

Resolved,  As  the  opinion  of  the  committee,  that  the  permanent  seat  of  the  Gov- 
ernment  of  the  United  States  ought  to  be  at  some  convenient  place  on  the  east  bank 
of  the  Susquehanna,  in  the  State  of  Pennsylvania;  and  that  until  the  necessary 
buildings  be  erected  for  the  purpose  the  seat  of  the  Government  ought  to  be  at  New 
York. 

Mr.  Lee's  amendment  and  several  others  were  rejected,  and  Mr. 
Goodhue's  was  carried. 

Mr.  Fitzsimons,  of  Pennsylvania,  on  September  5,  1789,  then  pro- 
posed the  following: 

Resolved,  As  the  opinion  of  this  committee,  that  the  President  of  the  United  States 
be  authorized  to  appoint  —  —  commissioners,  to  examine  and  report  to  him,  the 
most  eligible  situation  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Susquehanna,  for  the  permanent  seat 
of  the  Government  of  the  United  States.  That  the  said  commissioners  be  authorized, 
by  and  with  the  advice  of  the  President,  to  purchase  such  quantity  of  land  as  may 

be  thought  necessary,  and  to  erect  thereon  within years  suitable  buildings  for 

the  accommodation  of  Congress  and  of  the  officers  of  the  United  States.  That  the 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  together  with  the  commissioners  so  to  be  appointed,  be 

authorized  to  borrow  a  sum  not  exceeding —  dollars,  to  be  paid  in years 

with  interest,  at  the  rate  of per  cent  per  annum,  payable  out  of  the  duties  on 

imports  and  tonnage,  to  be  applied  to  the  purchase  of  the  land  and  the  erection  of 
the  buildings  aforesaid.  And  that  a  bill  ought  to  pass,  in  the  present  session,  in 
conformity  with  the  foregoing  resolutions. 

Before  any  decision  of  the  question  the  committee  rose  and  had 
leave  to  sit  again. 

One  of  the  amendments  proposed  and  rejected  on  the  3d  was  offered 
by  Mr.  Lee  in  these  words: 

Whereas  the  people  of  the  United  States  have  assented  to  and  ratified  a  constitu- 
tion for  their  Government,  to  provide  for  their  defense  against  foreign  danger,  to 
secure  their  perpetual  union  and  domestic  tranquillity,  and  to  promote  their  common 
interest,  and  all  these  great  objects  will  be  best  effected  by  establishing  the  seat  of 
government  in  a  station  as  nearly  central  as  a  convenient  water  communication  with 
the  Atlantic  Ocean,  and  an  easy  access  to  the  western  territory  will  permit;  and  as  it 
will  be  satisfactory  to  the  people  of  the  United  States,  and  give  them  a  firm  confi- 
dence in  the  justice  and  wisdom  of  their  Government  to  be  assured  that  such  a  sta- 
tion is  already  in  the  contemplation  of  Congress,  and  that  proper  measures  will  be 


60  GOVEKNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

taken  to  ascertain  it,  and  to  provide  the  necessary  accommodations,  as  soon  as  the 
indispensable  arrangements  for  carrying  into  effect  the  Constitution  can  be  made, 
and  the  circumstances  of  the  United  States  will  permit; 

Resolved,  That  a  place  as  nearly  central  as  a  convenient  water  communication  with 
the  Atlantic  Ocean,  and  an  easy  access  to  the  western  territory  will  permit,  ought  to 
be  selected  and  established  as  the  permanent  seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United 
States. 

Saturday,  September  5, 1789. — The  committee  of  the  whole  reported 
Mr.  Scott's,  Mr.  Goodhue's,  and  Mr.  Fitzsimons's  resolutions,  filling 
the  blank  in  the  latter  with  $100,000,  to  be  repaid  in  twenty  years,  at 
5  per  cent  interest.  The  House  took  up  the  report,  and  agreed  to 
Mr.  Scott's  resolution,  as  follows: 

Resolved,  That  the  permanent  seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States  ought 
to  be  fixed  at  some  convenient  place  as  near  the  center  of  wealth,  population,  and 
extent  of  territory,  as  may  be  consistent  with  convenience  to  the  navigation  of  the 
Atlantic  Ocean,  and  having  due  regard  to  the  situation  of  the  western  country. 

On  September  7,  1789,  Mr.  Lee  moved  to  amend  Mr.  Goodhue's  res- 
olution by  substituting  the  "north  bank  of  the  river  Potomac  in  the 
State  of  Maryland,"  for  "the  east  bank  of  the  river  Susquehanna  in 
the  State  of  Pennsylvania;"  which  amendment  was  rejected;  ayes,  21; 
noes,  29;  two  members  from  Marjdand,  viz,  Mr.  Seney  and  Mr.  Wm. 
Smith,  voting  in  the  negative. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Vining,  of  Delaware,  to  amend  the 
resolution  of  Mr.  Goodhue  by  striking  out  the  word  "permanent," 
and  also,  after  the  words,  "ought  to  be  at,"  to  strike  out  to  the  end 
of  the  resolution,  and  to  insert  in  lieu  thereof,  ' '  the  borough  of  Wil- 
mington in  the  State  of  Delaware1!"  This  motion  was  negatived;  ayes, 
19;  noes,  32. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Boudinot,  of  New  Jersey,  to  strike 
out  "east  bank  of  the  river  Susquehanna  in  the  State  of  Pennsylva- 
nia," and  insert  "Potomac,  Susquehanna,  or  Delaware."  This  motion 
was  lost;  ayes,  23;  noes,  28. 

A  motion  was  then  made  by  Mr.  Boudinot  to  strike  out  "  east  bank 
of  the  river  Susquehanna,"  etc.,  and  insert  "banks  of  either  side  of 
the  Delaware,  not  more  than  eight  miles  above  or  below  the  lower 
falls  of  Delaware."  'Rejected;  ayes 4;  noes,  46. 

Mr.  Boudinot  then  moved  to  strike  out  "east  banks,"  and  insert 
"banks."  Carried;  ayes,  26;  noes,  25. 

Mr.  Lee  then  moved  to  insert  "  or  Maryland"  after  the  words  "  Sus- 
quehanna in  the  State  of  Pennsylvania."  Rejected;  ayes,  25;  noes,  26. 

Mr.  Vining  then  moved  to  substitute  Wilmington  in  Delaware  for 
New  York,  as  the  temporary  residence  of  Congress.  Rejected;  ayes, 
21;  noes,  30. 

Mr.  Parker,  of  Virginia,  then  moved  to  insert  Philadelphia  in  place 
of  New  York.  Rejected;  ayes,  22;  noes,  29. 


GCVEItNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  61 

The  resolution  of  Mr.  Goodhue  was  then  passed,  as  follows: 
Resolved,  That  the  permanent  seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States  ought 
to  be  at  some  convenient  place  on  the  banks  of  the  river  Susquehanna,  in  the  State 
of  Pennsylvania,  and  that  until  the  necessary  buildings  be  erected  for  the  purpose 
the  seat  of  Government  ought  to  continue  in  the  city  of  New  York. 

Mr.  Fitzsimons's  resolution  being  under  debate,  a  motion  was  made 
by  Mr.  Gale,  of  Maryland,  to  add,  after  the  word  "  aforesaid,"  the 
following: 

Provided,  nevertheless,  That  previous  to  any  such  purchase  or  erection  of  buildings 
as  aforesaid,  the  legislatures  of  the  States  of  Pennsylvania  and  Maryland  make  such 
provision  for  removing  all  obstructions  to  the  navigation  of  the  said  river,  between 
the  seat  of  the  Federal  Government  and  the  mouth  thereof,  as  may  be  satisfactory 
to  the  President  of  the  United  States. 

This  amendment  was  rejected;  ayes,  24;  noes,  25. 

The  resolution  of  Mr.  Fitzsimons  was  then  passed;  ayes,  28;  noes, 
21 ;  the  blank  for  the  time  of  erecting  the  buildings  being  filled  with 
"four  years;"  and  it  was  ordered  that  a  bill,  or  bills,  be  brought  in 
pursuant  to  those  resolutions.  The  committee  to  prepare  them  con- 
sisted of  Mr.  Ames,  Mr.  Lawrence,  and  Mr.  Clymer. 

Tuesday,  September  8,  1789. — A  petition  was  presented  of  sundry 
inhabitants  of  Georgetown,  in  the  State  of  Maryland,  containing  an 
offer  to  put  themselves  and  fortunes  under  the  exclusive  jurisdiction 
of  Congress,  in  case  that  town  should  be  selected  as  the  permanent 
seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States. 

Ordered  to  lie  on  the  table. 

Monday,  September  14-,  1789. — Mr.  Ames,  from  the  committee 
appointed,  presented,  according  to  order,  a  bill  to  establish  the  seat  of 
the  Government  of  the  United  States,  which  was  received  and  read 
the  first  time. 

In  the  course  of  the  debate  (September  3),  Mr.  Lawrence  having 
alluded  to  an  observation  of  Mr.  Madison  (in  a  former  debate) — 

that  could  the  moderate  and  equal  policy  of  that  day's  proceedings  have  been  fore- 
seen in  the  convention  of  Virginia,  it  would  have  obviated  many  objections  that 
were  there  produced  against  the  Constitution. 

Mr.  Madison  replied: 

I  admit  that  on  a  former  occasion  I  applied  the  remark  quoted  by  the  gentleman 
from  New  York;  but  I  now  as  verily  believe  that  had  a  prophet  started  up  in  that 
convention  and  foretold  the  proceedings  of  this  day,  Virginia  would  not  now  be  a 
party  to  this  Constitution. 

Mr.  Burke  said  that  a  league  was  formed  between  the  Northern 
States  and  Pennsylvania.  This  was  denied  by  Mr.  Fitzsimons. 

Mr.  Scott,  of  Pennsylvania,  observed  that  the  question  seemed  to 
lie  between  the  Susquehanna  and  the  Potomac.  He  gave  a  geograph- 
ical description  of  those  rivers,  in  relation  to  their  advantages  of  com- 
munication with  the  western  territory ;  he  considered  Pittsburg  as  the 


62  GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

key  of  that  territory.  The  result  of  his  detail  was  clearly  in  favor  of 
the  Potomac.  That  there  is  no  comparison  between  the  advantages  of 
one  communication  and  the  other,  with  respect  to  the  Ohio  country. 
The  Potomac  will,  no  doubt,  one  day  be  a  very  important  channel  into 
those  regions.  That  though  he  thought  that  the  Potomac  was  nearer 
the  center  of  communication  between  the  Atlantic  and  the  Ohio  than 
the  Susquehanna,  as  there  was  no  prospect  of  a  decision  in  favor  of  the 
former  he  should  give  his  vote  for  the  Susquehanna.  In  this  situation, 
as  he  was  a  native  of  Pennsylvania,  there  was  a  certain  duty  which  he 
owed  to  his  country,  and  which  he  should  now  perform. 

Mr.  Madison,  in  debate  (on  the  4th  of  September),  observed — 

if  there  be  any  event  on  which  we  may  calculate  with  tolerable  certainty,  I  take  it 
the  center  of  population  will  continually  advance  in  a  southwestern  direction.  It 
must  then  travel  from  the  Susquehanna,  if  it  is  now  found  there.  It  may  go  beyond 
the  Potomac;  but  the  time  will  be  long  first;  and,  if  it  should,  the  Potomac  is  the 
great  highway  of  communication  between  the  Atlantic  and  the  Western  country, 
which  will  justly  prevent  any  attempts  to  remove  the  seat  farther  south.  I  have 
said,  sir,  that  the  communication  to  the  Western  territory  is  more  commodious 
through  the  Potomac  than  the  Susquehanna.  I  wish  all  the  facts  connected  with 
this  subject  could  have  been  more  fully  ascertained  and  more  fully  stated.  But  if 
we  consider  the  facts  which  have  been  offered  by  gentlemen  who  spoke,  we  must 
conclude  that  the  communication  through  the  Potomac  would  be  much  more  facile 
and  effectual  than  any  other. 

Mr.  Madison  stated  the  probable  distance  by  land  from  the  seat  of 
Government,  if  fixed  on  the  Potomac,  to  Pittsburg,  at  170  or  180  miles; 
if  by  the  river,  250  miles;  and  from  the  seat  of  Government,  if  fixed 
on  the  Susquehanna,  by  land,  250;  by  the  river,  500. 

Whether,  therefore  [he  said],  we  measure  the  distance  by  land  or  water,  it  is  in 
favor  of  the  Potomac;  and  if  we  consider  the  progress  in  opening  this  great  channel,  I 
am  confident  that  consideration  would  be  equally  favorable.  It  has  been  determined, 
by  accurate  research,  that  the  waters  running  into  the  Ohio  may  be  found  not  more 
than  2  or  3  miles  distant  from  those  of  the  Potomac.  This  is  a  fact  of  peculiar 
importance. 

Tuesday,  September  15,  1789. — The  bill  to  establish  the  seat  of  the 
Government  of  the  United  States  was  read  the  second  time  and  com- 
mitted to  a  Committee  of  the  Whole  House,  on  Thursday  next. 

Thursday,  /September  17,  1789. — In  Committee  of  the  Whole  upon 
the  bill, 

Mr.  Vining  moved  to  strike  out  the  first  paragraph,  and  to  insert 
one  to  the  following  effect: 

That  a  district  of  ten  miles  square,  comprehending  the  borough  of  Wilmington,  in 
the  State  of  Delaware,  to  be  located  as  hereafter  directed,  should  be  selected  as  the 
seat  of  Government  of  the  United  States  until  a  more  eligible  place  should  be  fixed 
upon  for  the  permanent  seat;  and  that  measures  should  be  taken  to  accommodate 
Congress  with  that  district  as  soon  as  conveniently  might  be:  Provided,  That  no  ces- 
sion be  accepted  till  acts  should  be  passed  by  the  States  of  Maryland  and  Pennsyl- 
vania to  open  a  water  communication  between  the  bays  of  Chesapeake  and  Delaware. 

This  motion  was  negatived;  ayes,  23;  noes,  28. 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  63 

Mr.  Gale  then  moved  to  amend  the  first  clause  of  the  bill  by  annex- 
ing- the  following  proviso: 

That  no  district  be  accepted  as  aforesaid  until  the  President  of  the  United  States 
shall  be  satisfied  of  the  practicability  of  effecting  a  navigation  from  the  seat  of  Gov- 
ernment to  the  mouth  of  said  river;  and  that  this  law  shall  not  be  carried  into  effect 
until  the  States  of  Pennsylvania  and  Maryland  shall  pass  acts  (not  including  any 
expense  to  the  said  States)  providing  for  removing  the  obstructions  of  the  same. 

A  division  of  the  motion  was  called  for  at  the  word  "river;"  and 
the  question  on  the  first  part  was  negatived;  ayes,  25;  noes,  29. 

The  question  on  the  second  part  was  then  put,  and  the  committee 
was  equally  divided;  ayes,  27;  noes,  27.  The  chairman  gave  the  cast- 
ing vote  in  the  affirmative. 

The  committee  then  rose  and  reported,  and  the  House  took  up  the 
report. 

The  amendment  adopted  by  the  committee,  on  the  motion  of  Mr. 
Gale,  was  agreed  to;  ayes,  28;  noes,  26. 

Mr.  Gale  then  moved  to  insert,  after  the  words  "  Susquehanna,  in 
the  State  of  Pennsylvania,"  the  words  "or  Maryland." 

This  motion  was  negatived  by  the  casting  vote  of  the  Speaker. 

The  bill  was  then  laid  on  the  table. 

Monday,  September  21, 1789. — The  House  proceeded  to  consider  the 
bill  to  establish  the  seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States,  which 
lay  on  the  table  with  amendments  reported  by  the  Committee  of  the 
Whole  House. 

Mr.  Madison  moved  to  strike  out  that  part  of  the  bill  which  pro- 
vided that  New  York  should  be  the  temporary  residence,  as  being  con- 
trary to  the  Constitution,  which  gives  the  power  to  the  two  Houses  to 
adjourn  without  the  consent  of  the  President,  and  before  they  could 
adjourn  to  anjr  place  but  New  York  this  bill,  if  it  passes,  must  be 
repealed,  which  can  not  be  done  without  his  consent. 

Mr.  Lawrence  and  Mr.  Ames  replied  that  the  same  objection  would 
apply  to  the  fixing  of  the  permanent  residence. 

Mr.  Madison's  motion  to  strike  out  was  negatived  without  a  division. 

Mr.  Madison  then  moved  to  strike  out  the  word  "  permanent,"  as  it 
was  unnecessary  and  not  a  term  used  in  the  Constitution. 

This  motion  was  also  negatived  without  a  division. 

The  bill  with  amendments  was  then  ordered  to  be  engrossed  for  a 
third  reading  on  the  next  day,  when  it  was  passed — ayes,  31;  noes,  16, 
viz: 

Ayes:  Ames,  Baldwin,  Benson,  Clymer,  Contee,  Fitzsimons,  Floyd, 
Foster,  Gale,  Gilman,  Goodhue,  Grout,  Hartley,  Hathorn,  Jackson, 
Lawrence,  Leonard,  Livermore,  Muhlenburg,  Patridge,  Van  Rensse- 
laer,  Scott,  Seney,  Sherman,  Sylvester,  William  Smith  (of  Maryland), 
Stone,  Thatcher,  Trumbull,  Wadsworth,  and  Wynkoop — 31. 

Noes:  Bland,  Boudinot,  Burke,  Cadwalader,  Coles,  Lee,  Madison, 
74986—09 5 


64  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT   OF    COLUMBIA. 

Mathews,  Moore,  Parker,  Shureman,  William  Smith  (of  South  Caro- 
lina), Sumpter,  Tucker,  Vining,  and  White — 16. 

Saturday,  September  26, 1789. — The  bill  was  returned  from  the  Sen- 
ate with  an  amendment  striking  out  all  that  part  respecting  the  Susque- 
hanna,  and  inserting  a  clause  fixing  the  permanent  seat  of  government 
at  Germantown,  in  the  State  of  Pennsylvania. 

A  district  of  10  miles  square,  bounded  on  the  south  by  a  line  run- 
ning parallel  at  1  mile's  distance  from  the  cit}r  of  Philadelphia  on  the 
east  side  of  the  river  of  Delaware  and  extending  northwardly  and  west- 
erly so  as  to  include  Germantown. 

A  motion  to  postpone  the  consideration  of  this  amendment  to  the 
next  session  was  lost — 29  to  25. 

Monday,  September  28,  1789. — Mr.  Madison  moved  to  amend  the 
Senate's  amendment  by  adding  a  proviso  that  nothing  therein  contained 
should  be  construed  to  affect  the  operation  of  the  laws  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, within  the  said  district  of  10  miles  square,  until  Congress  shall 
otherwise  provide  by  law. 

This  was  agreed  to  without  a  division. 

Mr.  Madison  moved  to  strike  out  of  the  Senate's  amendment  those 
words  which  comprehend  within  the  district  such  parts  of  the  Northern 
Liberties  of  Philadelphia  as  are  not  excepted  in  the  Pennsylvania  act  of 
cession. 

This  motion  was  negatived  without  a  division. 

Mr.  Lee  moved  to  strike  out  the  clause  providing  for  the  temporary 
residence  in  New  York. 

This  was  also  negatived  without  a  division. 

Mr.  Boudinot  moved  to  amend  the  amendment  of  the  Senate  by 
annexing  to  it  a  clause  providing  that  the  seat  of  government  might  be 
anywhere  on  the  Delaware,  within  the  States  of  New  Jersey,  Pennsyl- 
vania, or  either  of  them,  above  Philadelphia  and  below  Howell's 
Ferry. 

This  was  also  negatived  without  a  division. 

The  main  question,  that  the  House  agree  to  the  amendment  of  the 
Senate,  with  the  foregoing  amendment,  was  then  carried — ayes,  31; 
noes,  24. 

The  bill  was  then  returned  to  the  Senate,  which  postponed  the  con- 
sideration of  the  amendment  until  the  next  session. 

In  the  Senate — Saturday,  August  22,  1789. — The  memorial  of  John 
Cox  and  others,  citizens  of  the  State  of  New  Jersey  and  of  the  State 
of  Pennsylvania,  praying  that  the  future  seat  of  government  might  be 
established  on  the  banks  of  the  Delaware,  and  proposing  a  cession  of 
a  tract  of  land  of  10  miles  square,  was  read,  and,  together  with  a  draft 
of  the  said  tract,  was  laid  on  the  table. 

Tuesday,  August  25,  1789. — Mr.  Maclay  presented  a  draft  of  10 
miles  square,  including  the  borough  of  Lancaster,  with  a  letter  con- 
taining a  description  of  the  same,  from  Edward  Hand.  Mr.  Maclay 


GOVERNMENT    OP   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  65 

also  nominated  Wright's  Ferry,  on  the  Susquehanna;  Yorktown,  west 
of  the  Susquehanna;  Carlisle,  west  of  the  Susquehanna;  Harrisburg, 
on  the  Susquehanna;  Reading,  on  the  Schuylkill,  and  Germantown,  in 
the  neighborhood  of  Philadelphia,  as  different  places  in  Pennsylvania 
which  had  been  proposed  for  the  permanent  seat  of  government  of  the 
United  States. 

Monday,  September  21, 1789. — Mr.  Morris,  on  behalf  of  the  Senators 
from  the  State  of  Pennsylvania,  introduced  a  resolve  of  the  general 
assembly  of  that  State,  of  March  5,  1789,  making  a  respectful  offer  to 
Congress  of  the  use  of  any  or  all  of  the  public  buildings  in  Philadel- 
phia, the  property  of  the  State,  etc.,  in  case  Congress  should  at  any 
time  incline  to  make  choice  of  that  city  for  the  temporary  residence 
of  the  Federal  Government. 

Thursday,  September  24,  1789.  —On  the  second  reading  of  the  bill 
to  establish  the  seat  of  government  of  the  United  States,  a  motion  to 
strike  out  the  works  "in  the  State  of  Pennsylvania"  was  negatived — 
10  to  8. 

On  motion,  the  words  "at  some  convenient  place  on  the  banks  of 
the  river  Susquehanna,  in  the  State  of  Pennsylvania,"  were  stricken 
out — 11  to  7. 

A  motion  to  insert  in  their  place  the  words  "  at  some  convenient 
place  on  the  northern  bank  of  the  nvor  Potomac"  was  lost.  A  motion 
to  fill  the  blank  with  these  words — 

in  the  counties  of  Philadelphia,  Chester,  and  Bucks,  and  State  of  Pennsylvania, 
including  within  it  the  town  of  Germantown  id  such  parts  of  the  Northern  Liber- 
ties of  the  city  of  Philadelphia  as  are  not  excepted  by  the  act  of  cession  passed  by 
the  legislature  of  the  said  State, 

was  carried  by  the  casting  vote  of  the  Vice-President,  18  Senators 
being  present. 

Friday,  September  25,  1789. — A  motion  to  strike  out  the  words — 

and  that  until  the  necessary  buildings  should  be  erected  therein,  the  seat  of  govern- 
ment shall  continue  at  the  city  of  New  York — 

was  lost — 11  to  7. 

The  second  section  of  the  bill  was  then  amended,  so  as  to  read  as 
follows: 

And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  President  of  the  United  States  be  authorized  to 
appoint  three  commissioners,  who  are,  under  his  direction,  to  locate  a  district,  not 
exceeding  10  miles  square,  in  the  said  counties,  and  including  therein  the  said 
Northern  Liberties  and  town  of  Germantown,  and  to  purchase  such  quantity  of  land 
within  the  same  as  may  be  necessary,  and  to  accept  grants  of  land  for  the  use  of  the 
United  States,  and  to  erect  thereon,  within  four  years,  suitable  buildings  for  the 
accommodation  of  the  Congress  and  of  the  officers  of  the  United  States. 

The  bill  was  further  amended  by  striking  out  the  last  two  sections, 
and  inserting  the  following: 

Provided,  That  no  powers  herein  vested  in  the  President  of  the  United  States  shall 
be  carried  into  effect  until  the  State  of  Pennsylvania,  or  individual  citizens  of  the 


66  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

same,  shall  give  satisfactory  security  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  to  furnish  and 
pay,  as  the  same  may  be  necessary,  one  hundred  thousand  dollars,  to  be  employed 
in  erecting  the  said  buildings. 

Saturday,  September  26,  1789.- — The  bill  was  read  the  third  time, 
passed,  and  sent  to  the  House  of  Representatives. 

Yeas,  Messrs.  Basset,  of  Delaware;  Dalton,  of  Massachusetts;  Ells- 
worth, of  Connecticut;  Johnson,  of  Connecticut;  King,  of  New  York; 
Morris,  of  Pennsylvania;  Paterson,  of  New  Jersey;  Read,  of  Dela- 
ware; Schuyler,  of  New  York:  and  Wingate,  of  New  Hampshire — 10. 

Noes,  Messrs.  Butler,  of  South  Carolina;  Carroll,  of  Maryland;  Gray- 
son,  of  Virginia;  Gunn,  of  Georgia;  Henry,  of  Maryland;  Izard,  of 
South  Carolina;  and  Lee,  of  Virginia — 7. 

Monday,  September  28,  1789. — The  bill  was  returned  by  the  House 
of  Representatives,  with  an  amendment  to  the  Senate's  amendment, 
the  consideration  of  which  was  postponed  to  the  next  session,  as  before 
stated. 

In  the  House  of  Representatives — Monday,  May  31, 1790. — A  motion 
to  consider  the  following  resolution,  proposed  by  Mr.  Fitzsimons,  on 
the  27th,  viz: 

Resolved,  That  Congress  shall  meet  and  hold  their  next  session  at — 

was  carried,  32  to  27,  Mr.  Thatcher,  of  Massachusetts,  who  objected 
to  the  motion,  remarking  "that  he  did  not  think  it  of  two  paper  dol- 
lars' consequence  to  the  United  States  whether  Congress  met  at  New 
York,  Philadelphia,  or  on  the  Potomac." 

A  motion  by  Mr.  Boudinot,  to  amend  the  same,  by  inserting,  after 
the  word  "resolved,"  the  words — 

that  a  permanent  seat  for  the  Government  of  the  United  States  shall  be  fixed  at 
some  convenient  place  on  the  banks  of  the  Delaware,  and — 

was  decided  by  the  Speaker  not  to  be  in  order.  Upon  appeal,  the 
House  was  equally  divided  upon  the  question  of  order,  and  the  Speaker 
decided  that  the  motion  was  not  in  order. 

A  motion  by  Mr.  Lawrence  to  commit  the  original  motion  to  a  Com- 
mittee of  the  Whole  House  was  negatived. 

Mr.  Smith,  of  Maryland,  proposed  to  fill  the  blank  with  4k  Balti- 
more," whose  inhabitants  had  raised  a  subscription  of  between  twenty 
and  thirty  thousand  pounds  to  erect  suitable  buildings. 

Mr.  Sherman  proposed  "Wilmington." 

A  motion  to  insert  "New  York"  was  lost — 35  to  25. 

Mr  Gerry  observed  that  it  is  important  to  determine  the  question 
respecting  the  temporary  and  permanent  residence  of  Congress,  for 
while  the  question  remains  doubtful  it  will  always  be  insinuating  itself 
in  all  great  national  questions. 

Mr.  Carroll  moved  to  insert  "Philadelphia." 

Mr.  Seney  moved  to  add  "or  Baltimore."  Mr.  Seney's  motion  was 
lost— 38  to  22. 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  67 

Mr.  Carroll's  motion  prevailed — 38  to  22. 

Ayes — Messrs.  Ashe,  Baldwin,  Boudinot,  Brown,  Cadwalader.  Car- 
roll, Clymer,  Coles,  Contee,  Fitzsimons,  Gale,  Gilruan,  Goodhue,  Grif- 
fin, Hartley,  Heister,  Jackson,  Lee,  Leonard,  Madison,  Mathews, 
Moore,  Muhlenburg,  Page,  Parker,  Scott,  Seney,  Sinnickson,  Smith 
of  Maryland,  Steele,  Stone,  Sumpter,  Thatcher,  Vining,  White,  Wil- 
liamson, Wynkoop — 38. 

Noes — Ames,  Benson,  Bloodworth,  Burke,  Floyd,  Foster,  Gerry, 
Grout,  Hathorn,  Huger,  Huntington,  Lawrence,  Livermore,  Van 
Rensselaer,  Schureman,  Sedgwick,  Sherman,  Silvester,  Smith  of  South 
Carolina,  Sturges,  Trumbull,  and  Tucker — 22. 

The  resolution  was  then  sent  to  the  Senate  for  their  concurrence. 

In  the  Senate  (on  the  same  31st  of  May,  1790}.—  Mr.  Butler,  of  South 
Carolina,  by  leave,  presented  a  bill  to  determine— 

the  permanent  seat  of  Congress  and  the  Government  of  the  United  States — 

which  was  read  the  first  time. 

Tuesday,  June  1,  1790. — The  bill  was  read  the  second  time  and 
debated.  The  resolution  of  the  House  of  the  31st  of  May  was  received 
and  its  consideration  postponed  to  the  next  day. 

Wednesday,  June  2,  1790. — The  bill  and  resolution  were  committed 
to  Messrs.  Butler,  Johnston,  Henry,  Lee,  and  Dalton. 

M<mday,  June  7,  1790. — Mr.  Butler,  from  the  committee,  made 
report  on  the  bill  respecting  the  permanent  residence,  the  considera- 
tion of  which  reports  was  postponed  to  the  next  day. 

Tuesday,  June  8,  1790. — The  Senate  refused  (13  to  11)  to  concur  in 
the  resolution  of  the  House  "to  meet  and  hold  their  next  session  in 
Philadelphia." 

The  Senate  then  proceeded  to  consider  the  report  of  the  committee 
on  the  bill  to  determine  the  permanent  residence,  etc. ;  which  was  as 
follows: 

First.  That  in  their  opinion,  taking  a  combination  of  circumstances  into  considera- 
tion, the  present  session  is  a  proper  time  for  fixing  on  the  permanent  residence  of 
Congress  and  the  Government  of  the  United  States,  and,  after  due  consideration, 
recommend  that  it  be  placed  on  the  eastern  or  northeastern  bank  of  the  Potomac. 

Your  committee  further  recommend  that  such  sums  of  money  as  may  be  offered 
by  the  States  for  the  carrying  this  bill  into  effect  may  be  accepted  of;  then  the  bill 
will  read  thus:  "And  to  accept  of  grants  of  money  or  lands." 

Your  committee  were  of  opinion  that  Congress  can  best  determine  the  time  to  be 
allowed  for  completing  the  buildings. 

With  respect  to  the  temporary  residence  of  Congress,  your  committee,  after  weigh- 
ing all  circumstances,  consider  the  ground  of  choice  to  be  so  narrowed  as  to  be  full 
in  the  view  of  the  Senate. 

Your  committee  recommend  that  the  Senate  should  agree  with  all  the  other  parts 
of  the  bill. 

Whereupon  a  motion  was  made  that  the  opinion  of  the  Senate  be 
taken,  whether  it  be  expedient  at  this  time  to  determine  upon  any 
place  for  the  permanent  seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States. 


68  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

The  question  was  decided  in  the  negative  by  the  casting  vote  of  the 
Vice-President. 

On  motion: 

Ordered,  That  the  consideration  of  the  bill  to  determine  "the  per- 
manent seat  of  Congress,"  etc.,  be  resumed,  the  report  of  the  commit- 
tee being  rejected. 

A  motion  was  lost  (15  to  9)  to  fill  the  blank  in  the  first  paragraph 
with  the  words  "the  easterly  bank  of  the  Potomac." 

A  motion  was  also  made  to  postpone  the  further  consideration  of 
the  bill  for  a  fortnight.     It  passed  in  the  negative. 
.A  motion  to  fill  the  blank  with  "Baltimore,"  was  also  lost,  IT  to  7, 

The  following  motions  were  also  lost,  viz: 

To  postpone  the  bill  indefinitely. 

To  postpone  the  bill  till  the  next  session  of  Congress. 

To  reject  the  first  enacting  clause  of  the  bill,  viz: 

Be  it  enacted,  etc.,  That  a  district  of  territory  not  exceeding  10  miles  square  to  be 
located  as  hereafter  directed  at ,  and  the  same  is  hereby  accepted  as  the  per- 
manent sfiat  of  Congress  and  the  Government  of  the  United  States. 

To  adjourn. 

To  fill  the  blank  with  "Wilmington,  in  the  State  of  Delaware." 

A  motion  was  then  made,  that  the  first  enacting  clause  be  agreed  to; 
which  was  superseded  by  a  motion  to  adjourn,  which  was  carried. 

In  the  House  of  Representatives,  Tuesday,  June  8, 1790. — The  House 
was  informed  by  message  that  the  Senate  disagreed  to  the  resolution 
of  the  House  of  the  31st  of  May,  "That  Congress  shall  meet  and  hold 
their  next  session  at  the  city  of  Philadelphia." 

Thursday,  June  10,  1790. — The  House  agreed,  by  a  vote  of  32  to  29, 
to  take  up  a  motion  which  had  been  laid  on  the  table,  as  follows: 

Resolved,  That  when  the  two  Houses  shall  adjourn  to  close  the  present  session,  the 
President  of  the  Senate  and  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives  do  adjourn 
their  respective  Houses  to  meet  and  hold  their  next  session  in  the  city  of  Phila- 
delphia. 

The  motion  being  read,  the  House  refused  to  commit  it  to  a  Com- 
mittee of  the  Whole— 33  to  28. 

Friday,  June  11,  1790. — A  motion  to  substitute  "Baltimore"  for 
"Philadelphia"  was  carried— 31  to  28. 

The  resolution,  so  amended,  was  then  agreed  to — 53  to  6,  the  noes 
being  Messrs.  Fitzsimons,  of  Pennsylvania;  Oilman,  of  Massachusetts; 
Schureman,  of  New  Jersey;  Tucker,  of  South  Carolina;  Williamson, 
of  North  Carolina,  and  Wynkoop,  of  Pennsylvania. 

In  the  Senate — Monday,  June  28,  1790. — The  Senate  proceeded  to 
the  consideration  of  the  resolve  of  the  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
llth  of  June  (to  adjourn  to  Baltimore),  which  was  postponed  to  takt 
up  the  bill  to  determine  "the  permanent  seat,"  etc. 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  69 

On  motion: 

Ordered,  That  the  consideration  of  the  bill  he  postponed,  and  that 
the  representation  of  JohnO'Donnell,  in  behalf  of  himself  and  others, 
citizens  of  Baltimore  town,  stating  that  town  to  be  exceedingly  com- 
modious and  eligible  for  the  permanent  seat  of  government  of  the 
United  States,  and  the  representation  of  Robert  Peter  in  behalf  of 
himself  and  others,  inhabitants  of  Georgetown,  for  the  same  purpose, 
T)e  severally  read. 

The  consideration  of  the  bill  was  resumed,  and  the  first  enacting 
clause  read,  as  follows: 

Be  it  enacted,  etc. ,  That  a  district  of  territory,  not  exceeding  10  square  miles,  to  be 
located  as  hereafter  directed,  at  —  —  be,  and  the  same  is  hereby,  accepted  as  the 
permanent  seat  of  Congress  and  the  Government  of  the  United  States. 

A  motion  to  till  the  blank  with  the  word  "  Baltimore  "  was  lost — 15 
to  10. 

On  motion,  after  the  word  ""directed,"  in  the  fifth  line  of  the  bill,  to 
strike  out  to  the  end  of  the  clause,  and  insert-T- 
on the  river  Potomac,  at  some  place  between  the  mouths  of  the  Eastern  Branch  and 
Connogochegue,  be,  and  the  same  is  hereby,  accepted,  for  the  permanent  seat  of  the 
Government  of  the  United  States:  Provided,  nevertheless,  That  the  operation  of  the 
laws  of  the  State  within  such  district  shall  not  be  affected  by  this  acceptance,  until 
the  time  fixed  for  the  removal  of  the  Government  thereto,  and  until  Congress  shall 
otherwise  by  law  provide. 

It  passed  in  the  affirmative,  16  to  9. 

On  motion  that  the  bill  be  amended  as  follows: 

After  the  word  "authorized,"  in  the  second  clause,  strike  out  to  the  end  of  the  said 
•clause  and  insert,  "to  appoint,  and  by  supplying  vacancies  happening  from  refusals 
to  act,  or  other  causes,  to  keep  in  appointment,  as  long  as  may  be  necessary,  three 
commissioners,  who,  or  any  two  of  whom,  shall,  under  the  direction  of  the  President, 
and  by  proper  metes  and  bounds,  define  and  limit  a  district  or  territory,  under  the 
limitations  above  mentioned;  and  the  district  so  defined,  limited,  and  located  shall 
be  deemed  the  district  accepted  by  this  act  for  the  permanent  seat  of  the  Government 
of  the  United  States." 

The  motion  was  agreed  to  without  a  division. 

On  motion  to  subjoin  to  the  amendment  last  agreed  to,  as  follows: 

And  be  it  enacted,  That  the  said  commissioners,  or  any  two  of  them,  shall  have 
power  to  purchase  or  accept  such  quantity  of  land  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  said 
river,  within  the  said  district,  as  the  President  shall  deem  proper  for  the  use  of  the 
United  States,  and  according  to  such  plans  as  the  President  shall  approve,  the  said 
commissioners,  or  any  two  of  them,  shall,  prior  to  the  first  Monday  in  December  in 
the  year  1800,  provide  suitable  buildings  for  the  accommodation  of  Congress  and  of 
the  President,  and  for  the  public  offices  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States. 

A  motion  was  made  to  amend  the  amendment  so  as  that  it  should 
read,  "prior  to  the  first  Monday  of  December,  1794;"  which  motion 
was  lost — 16  to  9. 

A  motion  was  then  made  to  amend  the  proposed  amendment  so  as 


70  GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

that  it  should  read,  "prior  to  the  first  Monday  in  December,  1798;" 
which  was  also  lost. 

And  on  motion  to  agree  to  the  proposed  amendment  to  the  bill,  it 
passed  in  the  negative — 17  to  8. 

A  motion  prevailed  (15  to  10)  to  strike  out  the  third,  fourth,  and 
fifth  enacting  clauses  in  the  bill  and  insert  the  following: 

And  be  it  enacted,  That  for  defraying  the  expense  of  such  purchases  and  buildings 
the  President  of  the  United  States  be  authorized  and  requested  to  accept  grants  of 
money,  and  cause  to  be  borrowed  a  sum  not  exceeding  one  hundred  thousand  dol- 
lars, at  an  interest  not  exceeding  six  per  cent;  for  payment  of  which,  and  repayment 
of  the  principal  within  twenty  years,  so  much  of  the  duties  on  imposts  and  tonnage 
as  may  be  sufficient  is  hereby  pledged  and  appropriated. 

On  motion  to  subjoin  the  following  to  the  clause  last  agreed  to: 

And  be  it  enacted,  That  on  the  said  first  Monday  in  December,  1800,  the  seat  of 
the  Government  of  the  United  States  shall,  by  virtue  of  this  act,  be  transferred  to 
the  district  and  place  aforesaid;  and  all  offices  attached  to  the  said  seat  of  govern- 
ment shall  accordingly  be  removed  thereto  by  their  respective  holders,  and  shall, 
after  the  said  day,  cease  to  be  exercised  elsewhere;  and  the  necessary  expense  of 
such  removal  shall  be  defrayed  out  of  the  duties  on  imposts  and  tonnage,  of  which  a 
sufficient  sum  is  hereby  appropriated. 

It  was  carried — 13  to  12. 

On  motion  to  fill  the  first  blank  in  the  last  paragraph  of  the  bill,  viz: 

And  be  it  further  enacted  by  the  authority  aforesaid,  That  the  temporary  residence 
of  Congress  shall  be  and  continue  in  the  —  —  till  the  year ,  and  no  longer — 

with  the  words  "  city  of  New  York,"  it  passed  in  the  affirmative — 
13  to  12. 

Tuesday,  June  29,  1790. — A  motion  to  fill  the  blank  in  the  last  para- 
graph of  the  bill  with  the  words  "one  thousand  eight  hundred"  was 
carried — 13  to  12. 

A  motion  to  agree  to  the  last  clause  of  the  bill,  amended  to  read  as 
follows: 

Be  it  enacted,  etc.  That  the  temporary  residence  of  Congress  shall  be  and  continue 
in  the  city  of  New  York  till  the  year  1800,  and  no  longer. 

It  passed  in  the  negative — 16  to  9. 

A  motion  was  made  to  subjoin  the  following  paragraph  to  the  bill 
in  lieu  of  that  last  struck  out,  to  wit: 

And  be  it  enacted,  That  prior  to  the  first  Monday  in  December  next,  all  offices 
attached  to  the  seat  of  Government  of  the  United  States,  shall  be  removed  to,  and 
until  the  first  Monday  in  December,  in  the  year  1800,  shall  remain  at,  the  city  of 
Philadelphia,  in  the  State  of  Pennsylvania;  at  which  place  the  two  Houses  do  hereby 
resolve  that  the  session  of  Congress  next  ensuing  the  present  shall  be  held. 

A  motion  was  made  to  amend  the  motion,  as  follows: 

And  be  it  enacted,  That  Congress  shall  continue  to  hold  their  sessions  in  the  city  of 
New  York  until  the  first  Monday  in  December,  1794;  and  from  and  after  the  said 
first  Monday  of  December,  1794,  Congress  shall  hold  their  sessions  in  the  city  of 
Philadelphia,  and  shall  continue  there  to  hold  the  same  until  the  first  Monday  ic 
December,  1800. 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  7l 

This  last  motion  was  negatived  by  the  casting  vote  of  the  Vice- 
President,  the  Senate  being  divided —13  to  13. 

A  similar  motion  in  regard  to  New  York  and  Baltimore  was  nega- 
tived—16  to  10. 

A  similar  motion  to  continue  to  sit  at  New  York  until  the  first  Mon- 
day in  December,  1792,  and  afterwards  at  Philadelphia  until  the  first 
Monday  in  December,  1800,  was  decided  in  the  negative  by  the  casting 
vote  of  the  Vice-President. 

The  original  motion,  for  removing  the  public  offices  to  the  Federal 
District  before  the  first  Monday  in  December,  1800,  and  to  remove  to 
and  continue  in  Philadelphia  until  that  time,  was  negatived  by  the  cast- 
ing vote  of  the  Vice-President,  the  Senate  being  divided — 13  to  13,  viz: 

Yeas:  Bassett,  Carroll,  Elmer,  Gunn,  Hawkins,  Henry,  Langdon, 
Lee,  Maclay,  Morris,  Read,  Walker,  and  Wingate — 13.  Nays:  But- 
ler, Dalton,  Ellsworth,  Few,  Foster,  Johnson,  Johnston,  Izard,  King, 
Paterson,  Schuyler,  Stanton,  and  Strong — 13. 

A  motion  that  the  bill  pass  to  a  third  reading  was  superseded  by  a. 
motion  to  adjourn,  which  was  carried. 

Wednesday,  June  30, 1790. — The  Senate  agreed  to  reconsider  the  last 
paragraph  in  the  bill,  which  was  yesterday  struck  out;  and 

On  motion  to  amend  the  paragraph  to  read  as  follows: 

And  be  it  enacted,  That  prior  to  the  first  Monday  in  December  next  all  offices 
attached  to  the  seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States  shall  be  removed  to  and, 
until  the  said  first  Monday  in  December  in  the  year  1800,  shall  remain  at  the  city  of 
Philadelphia,  in  the  State  of  Pennsylvania,  at  which  place  the  session  of  Congress 
next  ensuing  the  present  shall  be  held. 

A  motion  was  made  to  amend  the  motion  to  read  as  follows: 

And  be  it  enacted,  That  Congress  shall  continue  to  hold  their  sessions  in  the  city  of 
New  York  until  the  first  Monday  in  December,  1794,  and  from  and  after  the  said 
first  Monday  of  December,  1794,  Congress  shall  hold  their  sessions  in  the  city  of 
Philadelphia,  and  shall  continue  there  to  hold  the  same  until  the  first  Monday  of 
December,  1800. 

This  motion  was  lost  without  a  division. 

A  similar  motion  to  amend,  substituting  1792  for  1794,  was  also  lost 
without  a  division. 

The  original  motion  was  then  carried,  14  to  12,  Mr.  Butler  having 
gone  over. 

The  Senate  also  agreed  to  reconsider  and  strike  out  the  following 
clause,  which  had  been  agreed  to  yesterda}T: 

and  cause  to  be  borrowed  a  sum  not  exceeding  one  hundred  thousand  dollars  at 
an  interest  not  exceeding  six  per  .cent,  for  payment  of  which,  and  repayment  of  the 
principal  within  twenty  years,  so  much  of  the  duties  on  imposts  and  tonnage  as  may 
be  sufficient  is  hereby  pledged  and  appropriated. 

Yeas,  19;  nays,,  7. 

The  bill  was  then  ordered  to  a  third  reading,  16  to  10,  viz: 

Ayes:  Bassett,  Butler,  Carroll,  Elmer,  Few,  Gunn,  Hawkins,  Henry, 


72  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT   OF    COLUMBIA. 

Johnston,  Lang-don,  Lee,  Maclay,  Morris,  Read,  Walker,  and  Win 
gate,  16. 

Noes:  Dal  ton,  Ellsworth,  Foster,  Johnson,  Izard,  King-,  Peterson, 
JSchuyler,  Stanton,  and  Strong,  10. 

Thursday,  July  1,  1790. — On  the  third  reading  of  the  bill,  a  motion 
was  lost  to  strike  out  these  words  in  the  first  enacting  clause, ' '  between 
the  mouths  of  the  Eastern  Branch  and  Connococheaque,"  and  insert 
"within  thirty  miles  of  Hancock  Town." 

A  motion  to  substitute  the  first  Monday  in  May,  1791,  for  the  first 
Monday  in  December,  1790,  as  the  time  for  the  removal  of  the  public 
offices  to  Philadelphia,  was  lost  by  the  casting  vote  of  the  Vice-Presi- 
dent, the  Senate  being  divided,  13  to  13. 

A  motion  to  restore  the  clause  authorizing  the  President  to  borrow 
one  hundred  thousand  dollars  was  lost  without  a  division. 

The  bill  was  then  passed — 14  to  12.  Mr.  Few  and  Mr.  Wingate, 
who  voted  in  favor  of  the  third  reading,  voted  against  the  passage  of 
the  bill.  The  other  votes  were  the  same  as  on  ordering  the  bill  to  a 
third  reading. 

The  title  of  the  bill  was  ordered  to  be  "An  act  for  establishing  the 
temporary  and  permanent  seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United 
States." 

In  the  House  of  Representatives,  Friday,  July  2, 1790. — The  bill  was 
brought  in  from  the  Senate  and  had  its  first  and  second  reading  and 
committed  to  a  committee  of  the  whole  House. 

Tuesday,  July  6,  1790. — In  Committee  of  the  Whole  Mr.  Sherman 
moved  to  strike  out  of  the  first  clause  the  words  "on  the  river  Poto- 
mac,'1 etc.,  and  insert  a  clause  which  should  include  the  town  of 
Baltimore. 

Mr.  Burke,  of  South  Carolina,  in  debate,  speaking  of  the  removal 
of  Congress  from  New  York  to  Philadelphia,  said: 

It  is  calculated  to  arrest  the  funding  system  and  to  throw  everything  into  con- 
fusion. *  *  *  If  the  bill  is  passed  in  its  present  form  Congress  will  never  leave 
Philadelphia. 

He  spoke  in  handsome  terms  of  Pennsylvania,  but  he  was  afraid  of 
its  influence,  and  it  was  the  last  State  in  which  he  would  ever  consent 
that  the  permanent  seat  of  Government  should  be.  He  then  adverted 
to  the  influence  of  the  members  from  that  State,  who  by  their  political 
management  had,  he  said,  raised  a  storm  in  the  United  States.  He 
objected  to  Philadelphia  also  on  account  of  there  being  no  gallery  in 
the  House  proposed  for  the  accommodation  of  Congress.  An  open 
gallery  he  considered  as  a  very  important  check  to  the  legislature. 

Mr.  Lawrence,  among  other  topics,  adverted  to  the  funding  busi- 
ness and  other  important  matters  which  remain  to  be  decided  on,  and 
very  strongly  intimated  that  these  questions  were  to  be  determined 
agreeably  to  the  fate  of  this  bill. 

Mr.  Bloodworth  observed  that,  as  the  funding  bill  had  been  alluded 


GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF   COLUMBIA.  73 

to,  he  could  wish  that  the  objection  from  that  quarter  might  be  taken 
out  of  the  way,  and  moved  that  they  rise  in  order  to  take  up  the  ways 
and  means. 

Mr.  Smith,  of  Maryland,  introduced  an  address  from  the  inhabit- 
ants of  Baltimore  to  the  Members  and  Senators  from  that  State,  which 
was  read.  A  memorial  from  the  inhabitants  of  Georgetown  was  also 
read,  and  certain  papers  received  from  the  executive  of  Virginia,  and 
a  report  of  a  committee  appointed  b}-  the  old  Congress  to  view  the 
banks  of  the  Potomac. 

Mr.  Sene}*,  of  Maryland,  observed  that  the  State  of  Maryland  was  as 
much  divided  on  the  subject  as  the  United  States  seemed  to  be.  A 
great  rivalship  exists  between  the  Potomac  and  Susquehanna  rivers. 
Pennsylvania  and  Maryland  had  given  the  preference  to  the  Susque- 
hanna. He  agreed  that  Pennsylvania,  Maryland,  and  Virginia  were 
the  onl}T  States  who  could  make  any  reasonable  pretensions  for  the 
seat  of  government,  but  a  majority  of  voices  from  these  States  had 
been  against  the  Potomac. 

Mr.  Scott,  of  Pennsylvania,  said  that  from  the  town  of  Baltimore 
there  is  no  water  conveyance  'to  the  interior  country,  but  from  the 
proposed  place  on  the  Potomac  there  are  200  miles  navigation  directly 
into  the  heart  of  the  country. 

Mr.  Madison  contended  that  Baltimore  offered  no  advantages  which 
were  not  common  to  the  Potomac,  and  that  in  regard  to  centrality, 
security  from  invasion,  and  relation  to  the  western  country,  the 
Potomac  had  greatly  the  advantage. 

In  answer  to  the  fears  of  some,  that  a  future  Congress  would  repeal 
the  act,  he  flattered  himself  that  some  respect  would  be  paid  to  the 
public  interest  and  the  plighted  faith  of  the  Government.  He  urged 
the  friends  of  the  bill  not  to  put  it  in  hazard  b}^  consenting  to  any 
amendment. 

Mr.  Gerry  regretted  that  the  subject  had  been  brought  forward, 
"for  it  is  very  evident  that  it  has  had  a  very  pernicious  influence  on 
the  great  business  of  funding  the  public  debt."  He  said  that  it  had 
been  promised  to  New  York  that  this  place  (New  York)  should  be  the 
temporary  residence  of  Congress,  and  on  this  engagement  the}'  came 
into  an  unconditional  adoption  of  the  Constitution. 

Mr.  Vining,  of  Delaware,  said: 

We  are  sent  here  to  do  the  public  business,  and  I  trust  that  our  constituents  have 
not  sent  men  that  are  to  be  deterred  from  doing  their  duty  by  such  insidious  insin- 
uations, such  ill-founded  suggestions  of  deceiving  and  deluding  the  citizens  of  this 
place.  He  imputed  the  embarrassments  of  the  public  business  to  the  assumption  of 
the  State  debts,  and  not  to  the  subject  of  residence. 

Wednesday,  July  7,  1790. — In  Committee  of  the  Whole,  Mr.  Smith, 
of  South  Carolina,  and  several  other  members  expressed  their  appre- 
hensions that  if  Congress  should  remain  ten  years  in  Philadelphia  the 
seat  of  government  would  never  be  removed. 


74  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

Mr.  Sherman's  motion  to  substitute  Baltimore  for  the  Potomac  was 
negatived — 37  to  23. 

Mr.  Burke  then  made  the  following  motion :  That  the  seat  of  gov- 
ernment should  remain  in  New  York  two  years  from  last  May;  and  from 
the  expiration  of  that  time  to  the  year  1800,  that  the  seat  of  govern- 
ment should  remain  in  Philadelphia.  This  resolution  was  laid  on  the 
table. 

Mr.  Sedgwick,  of  Massachusetts,  moved  to  substitute  "Delaware" 
for  "Potomac."  Negatived  without  debate. 

Mr.  Seney  moved  that  the  permanent  residence  should  be  fixed 
between  the  Potomac  and  the  Susquehanna.  Negatived  without 
a  division. 

Mr.  Gerry  moved  to  amend  the  clause  so  as  to  include  the  town  of 
Alexandria.  This  motion  was  also  lost. 

A  motion  by  Mr.  Smith,  of  Maryland,  to  insert  the  word  "locate," 
was  also  lost;  as  was  also  a  motion  made  by  Mr.  Lawrence,  of  New 
York,  to  substitute  1795  for  1800. 

Tuesday,  July  #,  1790. — Mr.  Burke,  of  South  Carolina,  then  moved 
the  following  amendment: 

Be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  city  of  New  York  shall  be  seat  of  the  government  of 

the  United  States  until  the day  of ;  and  that  thereafter,  as  soon  as  the 

same  may  be  conveniently  done,  all  the  offices  attached  to  the  seat  of  the  Govern- 
ment of  the  United  States  shall  be  removed  to  the  city  of  Philadelphia,  in  the  State 
of  Pennsylvania,  which  shall  thenceforth  be  the  seat  of  said  Government  until  the 
day  of . 

This  motion  was  lost — 32  to  28. 

Mr.  Smith,  of  South  Carolina,  moved  the  words  "at  which  place 
the  ensuing  session  of  Congress  shall  be  held"  should  be  erased,  on  the 
ground  that  the  clause  would  limit  the  constitutional  right  of  the  two 
Houses  to  adjourn  without  the  consent  of  the  President. 

This  motion  being  negatived,  the  committee  rose  -and  reported  the 
bill  without  amendment. 

Friday,  July  #,  1790. — Mr.  Boudinot  moved  to  substitute  "Dela- 
ware "  for  "Potomac."  Negatived,  39  to  22. 

Mr.  Ames,  of  Massachusetts,  moved  to  strike  out  "Potomac"  and 
insert  "Georgetown,  in  Pennsylvania."  Negatived,  39  to  22. 

Mr.  Smith,  of  Maryland,  moved  to  strike  out  "Potomac,"  etc.,  and 
insert  the  words  "between  the  rivers  Susquehanna  and  Potomac,  as 
the  most  healthy  and  convenient  place,  having  due  regard  to  the  navi- 
gation of  the  Atlantic  Ocean  and  the  situation  of  the  Western  terri- 
tory." Negatived,  36  to  25. 

Mr.  Lawrence  moved  to  substitute  "  Baltimore"  for  "the  Potomac." 
The  question  was  divided  and  the  motion  to  strike  out  was  negatived, 
34  to  26. 

Mr.  Gerry  moved  to  strike  out  of  the  third  section  the  words  "pur- 
chase or."  Negatived,  35  to  26. 


GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF   COLUMBIA.  75 

Mr.  Geriy  then  moved  to  amend  the  third  section  by  inserting  after 
the  word  "purchase"  the  words  "with  such  money  only  as  may  be 
granted  to  the  President  of  the  United  States  in  the  manner  herein- 
after provided."  Negatived,  33  to  26. 

Mr.  Lawrence  moved  to  add  these  words,  "  Provided,  That  the  pur- 
chases and  buildings  aforesaid  shall  not  exceed  the  sum  of  -  —  dol- 
lars. Negatived,  32  to  26. 

Mr.  Gerry  then  moved  to  strike  out  the  words  "three  Commission- 
ers or  any  two  of  them.  Lost. 

Mr.  Tucker,  of  South  Carolina,  moved  to  strike  out  the  fifth  section 
(respecting  the  removal  of  the  public  offices).  Negatived,  33  to  28. 

Mr.  Burke  moved  to  substitute  "May,  1792,"  for  "December, 
1790,"  in  the  fifth  section.  Lost,  32  to  28. 

Mr.  Sherman  moved  to  substitute  "May,"  for  "December,"  in  the 
fifth  section.  Lost,  33  to  28. 

Mr.  Smith,  of  South  Carolina,  moved  to  strike  out  of  the  fifth  sec- 
tion the  words  "at  which  place  the  session  of  Congress  next  ensuing 
the  present  shall  be  held."  Lost,  33  to  26. 

Mr.  Smith,  of  Maryland,  moved  to  amend  the  fifth  section  by  adding 
the  following,  viz: 

Provided  nevertheless,  That  whenever  the  President  of  the  United  States  shall  receive 
authentic  information  that  the  public  buildings  aforesaid  are  so  far  completed  as  "to 
be  fit  for  the  reception  of  both  Houses  of  Congress  all  offices  attached  to  the  seat  of 
government  shall  be  removed  thereto,  anything  herein  contained  to  the  contrary 
notwithstanding. 

Negatived,  48  to  13. 

The  bill  was  then  passed,  without  amendment — ayes,  32;  noes,  29. 

Ayes— Ashe,  Baldwin,  Bloodworth,  Brown,  Cadwalader,  Carroll, 
Clymer,  Coles,  Contee,  Fitzsimons,  Gale,  Griffin,  Hartly,  Heister, 
Jackson,  Lee,  Madison,  Matthews,  Moore,  Muhlenberg,  Page,  Parker, 
Scott,  Sevier,  Sinnickson,  Steele,  Stone,  Sumter,  Vining,  White,  Wil- 
liamson, Wynkoop — 32. 

Noes — Ames,  Benson,  Boudinot,  Burke,  Floyd,  Foster,  Gerry,  Gil- 
man,  Goodhue,  Grout,  Hathorn,  Huntington,  Lawrence,  Leonard, 
Livermore,  Partridge,  Rensselaer,  Schureman,  Sedgwick,  Seney,  Sher- 
man, Silvester,  Smith  of  Maryland,  Smith  of  South  Carolina,  Sturges, 
Thatcher,  Trumbull,  Tucker,  Wadsworth— 29. 

The  bill  was  approved  by  the  President  on  the  16th  of  Juty,  1790. 

Monday,  April  7,  1800. — "An  act  to  make  further  provision  for 
the  removal  and  accommodation  of  the  Government  of  the  United 
States"  was  read  the  third  time  in  the  House  of  Representatives. 
Passed — 47  to  33,  and  sent  to  the  Senate  for  concurrence. 

House,  Wednesday,  April  16,  1800. — Messrs.  H.  Lee,  Craik,  Evans, 
Dennis,  and  Marshall  were  appointed  a  committee  to  prepare  and 
report  a  system  of  rules  and  regulations  respecting  the  Territory  of 
Columbia.  This  committee  did  not  report. 


76  GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

Senate,  Thursday,  April  17,  1800. — The  bill  "to  make  further  pro- 
visions," etc.,  was  passed  by  the  Senate  with  amendments — 18  to  10. 

Yeas — Anderson,  Baldwin,  Bloodworth,  Chipman,  Cocke,  Dexter, 
Foster,  Franklin,  Greene,  Gunn,  Langdon,  Lloyd,  Marshall.  Mason, 
Nicholas,  Pinkney,  Read,  and  Tracy — 18. 

Noes — Bingham,  Brown,  Goodhue,  Hillhouse,  Latimore,  Lawrence,. 
Livermore,  Ross,  Schureman,  and  Wells — 10. 

The  House  agreed  to  the  amendment,  and  the  bill  was  approved  on 
the  24th  of  April,  1800. 

On  the  13th  of  May,  1800,  the  President  approved  an  act  directing 
that  the  next  session  of  Congress  should  be  holden  at  the  city  of 
Washington  on  the  third  Monday  of  November,  1800.  This  bill,  which 
originated  in  the  Senate,  was  ordered  to  a  third  reading  in  the  House 
on  Friday,  May  9,  1800,  by  the  casting  vote  of  the  Speaker,  the 
House  being  divided — 32  to  32.  On  the  third  reading  the  bill  was 
passed,  41  to  35. 

On  the  22d  of  November,  1800,  the  President  (Mr.  John  Adams),  in 
his  speech  at  the  opening  of  Congress,  said: 

I  congratulate  the  people  of  the  United  States  on  the  assembling  of  Congress  at  the 
permanent  seat  of  their  Government,  and  I  congratulate  you,  gentlemen,  on  the 
prospect  of  a  residence  not  to  be  changed.  It  is  with  you,  gentlemen,  to  consider 
whether  the  local  powers  over  the  District  of  Columbia,  vested  by  the  Constitution 
in  the  Congress  of  the  United  States,  shall  be  immediately  exercised.  If,  in  your 
opinion,  this  important  trust  ought  now  to  be  executed,  you  can  not  fail,  while  per- 
forming it,  to  take  into  view  the  future  probable  situation  of  the  territory  for  the 
happiness  of  which  you  are  about  to  provide.  You  will  consider  it  as  the  capital  of 
a  great  nation,  advancing  with  unexampled  rapidity  in  arts,  in  commerce,  in  wealth, 
and  in  population,  and  possessing  within  itself  those  energies  which,  if  not  thrown, 
away  or  lamentably  misdirected,  will  secure  to  it  a  long 'course  of  prosperity  and 
self-government. 

The  House  of  Representatives,  in  their  answer  to  the  speech,  say: 

The  final  establishment  of  the  seat  of  National  Government,  which  has  now  taken 
place  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  is  an  event  of  no  small  importance  in  the  political 
transactions  of  our  country.  A  consideration  of  those  powers  which  have  been  vested 
in  Congress  over  the  District  of  Columbia  will  not  escape  our  attention,  nor  shall  we 
forget  that  in  exercising  these  powers  a  regard  must  be  had  to  those  events  which 
will  necessarily  attend  the  capital  of  America. 

Wednesday,  December  31,  1800. — On  a  motion  to  recommit  the  bill 
concerning  the  District  of  Columbia,  Mr.  Harper  (in  reply  to  an  obser- 
vation that  the  people  of  the  District  had  continued  for  one  hundred 
years  to  live  happily  under  their  respective  State  governments,  and 
therefore  it  was  not  necessary  for  Congress  to  legislate  at  all  on  the 
subject)  said: 

But  the  provision  of  the  Constitution  on  this  subject  had  not  been  made  with  this 
view.  It  was  made  to  bestow  dignity  and  independence  on  the  Government  of  the 
Union.  It  was  to  protect  it  from  such  outrages  as  had  occurred  when  it  was  differ- 
ently situated,  when  it  was  without  competent  legislative,  executive,  and  judicial 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  77 

power  to  insure  to  itself  respect.  While  the  government  was  under  the  guardianship 
of  State  laws,  those  laws  might  be  inadequate  to  its  protection,  or  there  might -exist 
a  spirit  hostile  to  the  General  Government,  or,  at  any  ra'e,  indisposed  to  give  it  proper 
protection.  This  was  one  reason,  among  others,  for  the  provisions  of  the  Constitution 
confirmed  and  carried  into  effect  by  the  acts  of  Maryland  and  Virginia,  and  by  the 
act  of  Congress. 

The  bill  was  recommitted  to  Messrs.  H.  Lee,  Evans,  Craik,  Bird, 
Silas  Lee,  Chauncey  Goodrich,  and  Dennis. 

This  committee  did  not  report  '~pon  that  bill,  it  having  been  super- 
seded by  a  bill  with  the  same  title,  which  originated  in  the  Senate 
and  which  was  brought  to  the  House  on  the  5th  of  February,  1801, 
and  committed  to  a  committee  of  the  whole  -House,  where  it  was 
amended  and  passed,  with  the  amendment,  by  the  House,  on  the  23d, 
and  returned  to  the  Senate,  who  agreed  to  the  amendments  on  the 
26th;  and  the  bill  was  signed  by  the  President  on  the  27th. 

Notwithstanding  the  seat  of  Government  was  thus  fixed,  the  public 
offices  removed,  and  Congress  had  exercised  its  exclusive  legislation 
over  the  District,  a  motion  was  made  on  the  8th  of  February,  1803, 
in  the  House  of  Representatives,  by  Mr.  Bacon  (of  Massachusetts)  that 
it  be — 

Resolved,  That  it  is  expedient  for  Congress  to  recede  to  the  State  of  Virginia  the 
jurisdiction  of  that  part  of  the  Territory  of  Columbia  which  was  ceded  to  the  United 
States  by  the  said  State  of  Virginia  by  an  act  passed  the  3d  of  December,  1789, 
entitled,  etc.,  provided  the  said  State  of  Virginia  shall  consent  and  agree  thereto. 

Resolved,  That  it  is  expedient  for  Congress  to  recede  to  the  State  of  Maryland  the 
jurisdiction  of  that  part  of  Columbia  which  was  ceded  to  the  United  States  by  the 
said  State  of  Maryland  by  an  act  passed  the  19th  of  December,  1791,  entitled  "An 
act  concerning  the  Territory  of  Columbia  and  the  city  of  Washington ;"  provided 
the  said  State  of  Maryland  should  consent  and  agree  thereto. 

This  motion  was  referred  to  a  committee  of  the  whole  House 
immediately. 

The  reasons  urged  in  favor  of  these  resolutions  were — 

1.  That  exclusive  jurisdiction  is  not  necessary  nor  useful  to  the 
Government. 

2.  That  it  deprives  the  inhabitants  of  the  District  of  their  political 
rights. 

3.  That  much  of  the  time  of  Congress  was  consumed  in  legislating 
for  the  District. 

•i.  That  the  government  of  the  District  is  expensive. 

5.  The  incompetency  of  Congress  to  legislate  for  the  District,  because 
the  members  are  strangers  to  its  local  concerns. 

6.  It  is  an  example  of  a  government  without  representation,   an 
experiment  dangerous  to  the  liberties  of  the  States. 

In  answer  to  these  reasons  it  was  said: 

1.  That  the  Constitution  and  the  acts  of  cession  of  the  States  of 
Maryland  and  Virginia  and  the  act  of  Congress  accepting  the  cession 


78  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

all  contemplate  the  exercise  of  exclusive  legislation  by  Congress;  and 
its  usefulness,  if  not  its  necessity,  is  inferred  from  the  inconvenience 
which  was  felt  by  the  Congress  of  the  Confederation  for  want  of  it. 

2.  That  the  people  themselves,  who  are  said  to  be  deprived  of  their 
political  rights,  have  not  complained  and  do  not  desire  a  recession. 
The  evil  may  be  remedied  by  giving  them  a  representation  in  Congress 
when  the  District  shall  become  sufficiently  populous,  and  in  the  mean- 
time a  local  legislature.     If  they  have  not  political  rights,  they  have 
great  political  influence. 

3.  The  trouble  and  expense  of  legislating  for  the  District  will  not 
be  great,  and  will  diminish,  and  may  in  a  great  measure  be  avoided 
by  a  local  legislature. 

-i.  That  Congress  having  accepted  the  cession  can  not  divest  itself 
of  the  right  of  exclusive  jurisdiction  and  retain  its  seat  of  government. 

5.  That  Congress   can    not  recede    the    inhabitants   without  their 
consent. 

6.  If  the  District  should  be  receded,  there  would  be  no  obligation 
upon  the  Government  to  remain  in  this  place. 

7.  B}r  accepting  the  cession  and  exercising  exclusive  legislation  a 
contract  was  entered  into  between  the  ceding  States,  the  Congress,  and 
the  people  of  the  District  which  could  not  be  dissolved  but  by  the 
consent  of  all  the  parties. 

After  two  days'  debate  the  committee,  on  the  9th  of  February, 
reported  their  disagreement  to  the  resolutions,  and  the  House  con- 
curred in  the  report — 66  to  26. 

Notwithstanding  this  decided  rejection  of  these  resolutions,  they 
were  renewed  at  the  next  session  -by  Mr.  Dawson,  in  the  House,  on 
the  17th  of  March,  1801.  The  city  of  Washington,  however,  was 
excepted  from  their  operation. 

On  the  same  day  Mr.  Wright,  in  the  Senate,  brought  in  a  bill  for 
the  temporary  removal  of  the  public  offices  to  Baltimore,  and  for  the 
session  of  Congress  at  that  place. 

Mr.  Dawson's  resolutions  were  referred  to  a  committee  of  the  whole 
House. 

On  the  23d  of  March  the  House  refused  to  go  into  committee  upon 
them,  and  they  were  postponed  to  the  first  Monda}r  in  December,  i.  e., 
rejected  by  a  large  majority,  and  without  debate. 

In  the  Senate,  on  Monday,  the  19th  of  March,  Mr.  Wright  himself 
moved  that  the  further  consideration  of  the  bill  which  he  had  intro- 
duced on  the  17th  should  be  postponed  to  the  first  Monday  of  May  (a 
day  after  the  end  of  the  session),  intimating  that  it  was  not  his  inten- 
tion that  the  bill  should  be  passed,  but  that  it  should  operate  as  a 
stimulus  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  city  to  exert  themselves  in  providing 
more  convenient  accommodations  for  the  members  of  Congress. 


GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  79 

Gen.  James  Jackson,  of  Georgia,  in  reply,  denied  the  right  of  Con- 
gress to  remove  the  seat  of  government,  which  had  been  fixed  under 
the  provisions  of  the  Constitution.  He  observed  that  it  had  already 
cost  the  nation  the  assumption  of  the  State  debts  to  the  amount  of 
twenty-one  millions  of  dollars,  besides  one  or  two  millions  for  the 
public  accommodation.  That  Congress  could  not  remove  without  a 
violation  of  the  Constitution,  and  of  the  public  faith,  and  without 
indemnifying  the  proprietors  of  property  in  the  District.  He  said  he 
should  vote  against  the  postponement  under  the  expectation  that  the 
Senate  would  take  up  the  bill  and  reject  it  by  a  majority  so  great  that 
no  similar  proposition  should  ever  be  brought  before  them. 

Mr.  Anderson,  of  Tennessee,  considered  Congress  as  having  the 
constitutional  power  of  altering  the  seat  of  government,  and  thought 
it  expedient  to  remove  from  Washington  and  to  indemnify  the 
inhabitants. 

Mr.  Cocke,  of  Tennessee,  was  of  opinion  that  the  permanent  seat  of 
the  Government  was  fixed  under  the  Constitution  and  that  Congress 
had  not  the  power  to  alter  it. 

Mr.  Adams,  of  Massachusetts,  also  contended  strenuously  against  the 
right  of  Congress  to  remove  the  seat  of  Government:  To  do  so  would 
be  to  prostrate  the  national  faith  and  to  shake  the  confidence  of  the 
nation  in  the  Government. 

The  question  of  postponement  was  then  taken  and  decided  in  the 
negative,  24  to  3. 

Mr.  Dayton,  of  New  Jersey,  said  that  he  had  been  instructed  by  the 
legislature  of  New  Jersey,  in  case  any  prospect  presented  itself  of  a 
removal  of  the  seat  of  Government,  to  offer  in  their  name  the  public 
buildings  in  Trenton  for  their  accommodation.  He  therefore  gave 
notice  that  in  case  the  bill  should  go  to  a  third  reading  he  should  pro- 
duce his  instructions  and  move  to  substitute  Trenton  for  Baltimore. 
At  the  same  time  he  declared  his  opinion  of  the  impolicy  of  the  pro- 
posed measure.  The  provision  in  the  Constitution  had  arisen  from  an 
experience  of  the  necessity  of  establishing  a  permanent  seat  for  the 
Government.  To  avert  the  evils  arising  from  a  perpetual  state  of 
mutation,  and  from  the  agitation  of  the  public  mind  whenever  the 
question  was  discussed,  the  Constitution  had  wisely  provided  for  the 
establishment  of  a  permanent  seat,  vesting  in  Congress  exclusive  legis- 
lation over  it.  He  admitted  that  there  might  be  reasons  which  would 
justify  a  removal,  such  as  great  insalubrity  of  climate,  or  ver}*  great 
inconvenience  in  transacting  the  public  business,  or  a  turbulent  spirit 
in  the  inhabitants  endangering  the  safety  of  Congress,  or  a  determined 
resolution,  arising  from  a  dissatisfaction  with  the  government  of  Con- 
gress, expressed  in  favor  of  a  recession.  He  did  not,  however,  appre- 
hend that  any  of  these  reasons  would  occur. 
74986— OH (5 


80  GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

On  the  motion  of  Mr.  Maclay,  of  Pennsylvania,  the  words  "Balti- 
more" and  ''Maryland"  were  stricken  out  of  the  first  section,  and 
after  further  argument  the  bill  was  negatived,  19  to  9. 

On  Wednesday,  the  12th  of  February,  1806,  Mr.  Smilie,  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, offered  in  the  House  of  Representatives  two  resolutions  for 
re-ceding  the  District  of  Columbia,  similar  to  those  which  had  been 
offered  by  Mr.  Bacon  on  the  8th  of  February,  1803. 

These  resolutions  were  referred  to  a  Committee  of  the  Whole  House, 
and  made  the  order  of  the  day  for  the  following  Monday,  but  were 
never  afterwards  considered. 

On  Monday,  the  26th  of  September,  1814,  immediately  after  the 
burning  of  the  Capitol  and  public  offices  by  the  British,  Mr.  Fisk,  of 
New  York,  proposed  in  the  House  of  Representatives  the  following 
resolution: 

Resolved,  That  a  committee  be  appointed  to  inquire  into  the  expediency  of  remov- 
ing the  seat  of  Government  during  the  present  session  of  Congress  to  a  place  of  greater 
security  and  less  inconvenience  than  the  city  of  Washington,  with  leave  to  report  by 
bill  or  otherwise. 

This  resolution  was  agreed  to — 72  to  51. 

On  Monday,  October  3,  the  committee  reported  that  it  was  inex- 
pedient to  remove  the  seat  of  government  at  this  time  from  the  city 
of  Washington. 

Upon  the  motion  of  Mr.  Fisk,  the  word  "expedient"  was  substi- 
tuted for  "inexpedient,"  by  the  casting  vote  of  the  Speaker  (Mr. 
Cheves),  the  House  being  divided — 68  to  68.  The  reason  which  he 
gave  was  that  this  District  could  not  be  defended  except  atari  immense 
expense.  The  report,  as  amended,  was  then  referred  to  a  Committee 
of  the  Whole  House  and  made  the  order  of  the  day  for  the  4th  of 
October,  when  a  motion  by  Mr.  Newton  of  Virginia  to  postpone  the 
subject  indefinitely  was  lost — -77  to  61;  and  on  the  6th  the  resolution, 
as  amended,  was  agreed  to — 72  to  71,  and  a  committee  was  appointed 
to  bring  in  a  bill  accordingly,  who  reported  on  the  13th. 

On  the  loth  the  bill  was  rejected — 83  to  74.  If  the  vote  had  been 
taken  by  States,  Delaware  and  all  the  States  east  of  Delaware  would 
have  been  in  favor  of  removal  and  the  other  States  against  it,  except- 
ing Kentucky,  which  was  equally  divided.  There  being  then  18  States 
in  the  Union,  the  9  Eastern  States  would  have  carried  the  bill  through 
the  House. 

The  debate  upon  this  subject  was  maintained  for  several  days  by 
Mr.  Pearson  of  North  Carolina  (one  of  whose  speeches  will  be  found 
in  the  National  Intelligencer  of  November  5,  1814),  Mr.  Johnson  of 
Kentucky,  Mr.  Forsyth,  Mr.  Hawkins,  Mr.  Macon,  Mr.  Fisk  of  Ver- 
mont, and  Mr.  Rhea  against  the  removals;  and  Mr.  Stockton,  Mr. 
Grosvenor,  Mr.  Sharpe,  Mr.  Bowen,  Mr.  Ingersoll,  and  Mr.  Fisk  of 
York  in  fav.or  of  it. 

This  debate,  with  the  exception  of  Mr.  Pearson's  speech,  has  not 
been  published. 


GOVEENMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  81 

The  last  proposition  which  has-  been  made  for  receding  any  portion 
of  the  District  was  made  by  Mr.  Darlington,  in  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives on  the  6th  of  January,  1820,  in  the  following  words: 

Whereas  there  appears  to  be  considerable  dissatisfaction  among  the  inhabitants 
of  the  District  of  Columbia,  who  reside  without  the  limits  of  the  city  of  Washington, 
on  account  of  the  inconveniences  to  which  they  are  subjected  by  the  present  mode 
of  government  in  said  District;  and, 

Whereas  it  is  desirable  that  Congress  should,  as  far  as  practicable,  be  relieved  from 
the  duty  of  legislating  in  cases  where  it  is  at  once  burthensome  in  itself  and  unaccept- 
able to  the  people:  Therefore, 

Resolved,  That  the  Committee  for  the  District  of  Columbia  be  instructed  to  enquire 
into  the  expediency  of  retroceding  and  restoring  to  the  States  of  Maryland  and  Vir- 
ginia, respectively,  all  such  portions  of  the  territory  of  said  district,  not  included 
within  the  limits  of  the  city  of  Washington,  as  were  derived  from  those  States. 

But  the  House  refused  to  consider  the  resolution. 


APPENDIX  2. 

AN  ACT  for  establishing  the  temporary  and  permanent  seat  of  the  Government  of 

the  United  States. 

SECTION  1.  Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives 
of  the  United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  a  district 
of  territory,  not  exceeding  ten  miles  square,  to  be  located  as  hereafter 
directed  on  the  river  Potomac,  at  some  place  between  the  mouths  of 
the  Eastern  Branch  and  the  Connogochegue,  be,  and  the  same  is  hereby, 
accepted  for  the  permanent  seat  of  the  government  of  the  United 
States:  Provided  nevertheless,  That  the  operation  of  the  laws  of  the 
State  within  such  district  shall  not  be  affected  by  this  acceptance,  until 
the  time  fixed  for  the  removal  of  the  government  thereto,  and  until 
Congress  shall  otherwise  by  law  provide. 

SEC.  2.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  President  of  the  United 
States  be  authorized  to  appoint,  and  by  supplying  vacancies  happening 
from  refusals  to  act  or  other  causes,  to  keep  in  appointment  as  long 
as  may  be  necessary,  three  commissioners,  who,  or  any  two  of  whom, 
shall,  under  the  direction  of  the  President,  survey,  and  b}7  proper 
metes  and  bounds  define  and  limit  a  district  of  territory,  under  the 
limitations  above  mentioned;  and  the  district  so  defined,  limited,  and 
located  shall  be  deemed  the  district  accepted  by  this  act  for  the  per- 
manent seat  of  the  government  of  the  United  States. 

SEC.  3.  And  be  it  (further)  enacted,  That  the  said  commissioners,  or 
any  two  of  them,  shall  have  power  to  purchase  or  accept  such  quantity 
of  land  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  said  river,  within  the  said  district,  as 
the  President  shall  deem  proper  for  the  use  of  the  United  States  and 
according  to  such  plans  as  the  President  shall  approve,  the  said  com- 
missioners, or  any  two  of  them,  shall,  prior  to  the  first  Monday  in 
December,  in  the  year  one  thousand  eight  hundred,  provide  suitable 


82  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

buildings  for  the  accommodation  of  Congress  and  of  the  President 
and  for  the  public  offices  of  the  government  of  the  United  States. 

SEC.  4.  And  be  it  (further)  enacted,  That  for  defraying  the  expense 
of  such  purchases  and  buildings,  the  President  of  the  United  States  be 
authorized  and  requested  to  accept  grants  of  money. 

SEC.  5.  And  be  it  (further}  enacted,  That  prior  to  the  first  Monday 
in  December  next,  all  offices  attached  to  the  seat  of  the  government  of 
the  United  States,  shall  be  removed  to,  and  until  the  said  first  Monday 
in  December,  in  the  year  one  thousand  eight  hundred,  shall  remain 
at  the  city  of  Philadelphia,  in  the  State  of  Pennsylvania,  at  which 
place  the  session  of  Congress  next  ensuing  the  present  shall  be  held. 

SEC.  6.  And  be  it  (further)  enacted,  That  on  the  said  first  Monday 
in  December,  in  the  year  one  thousand  eight  hundred,  the  seat  of  the 
Government  of  the  United  States  shall,  by  virtue  of  this  act,  be  trans- 
ferred to  the  district  and  place  aforesaid.  And  all  offices  attached  to 
the  said  seat  of  Government,  shall  accordingly  be  removed  thereto  by 
their  respective  holders,  and  shall,  after  the  said  day,  cease  to  be  exer- 
cised elsewhere;  and  that  the  necessary  expense  of  such  removal  shall 
be  defrayed  out  of  the  duties  on  imposts  and  tonnage,  of  which  a  suffi- 
cient sum  is  hereby  appropriated. 

Approved,  July  16,  1790.     (1  Stats.,  130.) 


APPENDIX  3. 

AN  ACT  to  cede  to  Congress  a  district  of  10  miles  square  in  this  State  (Maryland) 
for  the  seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States.  Approved  December  23, 
1788. 

'•  Be  it  enacted  by  the  General  Assembly  of  Maryland,  That  the  rep- 
resentatives of  this  State  in  the  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
Congress  of  the  United  States,  appointed  to  assemble  at  New  York 
on  the  first  Wednesday  of  March  next,  be,  and  they  are  hereby, 
authorized  and  required,  on  behalf,  of  this  State,  to  cede  to  the  Con- 
gress of  the  United  States  smy  district  in  this  State  not  exceeding  10 
miles  square,  which  the  Congress  may  fix  upon  and  accept  for  the 
seat  of  Government  of  the  United  States. 


APPENDIX  4. 

AN  ACT  for  the  cession  of  10  miles  square  or  any  lesser  quantity  of  territory  within 
this  State  ( Virginia)  to  the  United  States  in  Congress  assembled,  for  the  perma- 
nent seat  of  the  General  Government.  Approved,  December  3,  1789. 

1.  Whereas  the  equal  and  common  benefits  resulting  from  the 
administration  of  the  General  Government  will  be  best  diffused  and 
its  operations  become  more  prompt  and  certain  by  establishing  such  a 
situation  for  the  seat  of  said  Government  as  will  be  most  central  and 
convenient  to  the  citizens  of  the  United  States  at  large,  having  regard 
as  well  to  population,  extent  of  territory,  and  free  navigation  to  the 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  83 

Atlantic  Ocean,  through  the  Chesapeake  Bay,  as  to  the  most  direct 
and  ready  communication  with  our  fellow  citizens  in  the  Western 
frontiers;  and  whereas  it  appears  to  this  assembly  that  a  situation 
combining  all  the  considerations  and  advantages  before  recited  may 
be  had  on  the  banks  of  the  river  Potomac,  above  tide  water,  in  a 
country  rich  and  fertile  in  soil,  healthy  and  salubrious  in  climate,  and 
abounding  in  all  the  necessaries  and  conveniences  of  life,  where,  in  a 
location  of  10  miles  square,  if  the  wisdom  of  Congress  shall  so  direct, 
the  States  of  Pennsylvania,  Maryland,  and  Virginia  may  participate 
in  such  location: 

2.  Be  it  therefore  enacted  by  the  general  assembly,  That  a  tract  of 
countiy,  not  exceeding  ten  miles  square,  or  any  lesser  quantity,  to  be 
located  within  the  limits  of  this  State,  and  in  any  part  thereof  as  Con- 
gress may  by  law  direct,  shall  be,  and  the  same  is,  forever  ceded  and 
relinquished  to  the  Congress  and  Government  of  the  United  States,  in 
full  and  absolute  right  and  exclusive  jurisdiction,  as  well  of  soil  as  of 
persons  residing  or  to  reside  thereon,  pursuant  to  the  tenor  and  effect 
of  the  eighth  section  of  the  first  article  of  the  Constitution  of  the 
Government  of  the  United  States. 

III.  Provided,  That  nothing  herein  contained  shall  be  herein  con- 
strued to  vest  in  the  United  States  any  right  of  property  in  the  soil, 
or  to  affect  the  rights  of  individuals  therein,  otherwise  than  the  same 
shall  or  may  be  transferred  by  such  individuals  to  the  United  States. 

IV.  And  provided  also,  That  the  jurisdiction  of  the  laws  of  this 
Commonwealth  over  the  persons  and  property  of  individuals  residing 
within  the  limits  of  the  cession  aforesaid  shall  not  cease  or  determine 
until  Congress,  having  accepted  the  said  cession,  shall  by  law  provide 
for  the  government  thereof,  under  their  jurisdiction,  in  the  manner 
provided  by  the  article  of  the  Constitution  before  recited. 


APPENDIX  5. 

AN  ACT  concerning  the  advance  of  money  to  the  Government  of  the  United  States 

for  public  buildings. 

Whereas  the  general  assembly  of  Maryland  has  acceded  to  a  propo- 
sition of  the  general  assembly  of  this  Commonwealth,  contained  in 
their  resolution  of  the  tenth  day  of  December,  1789,  concerning  an 
advance  of  money  to  the  General  Government  to  be  applied  towards 
the  erection  of  public  buildings  at  the  permanent  seat  of  the  Govern- 
ment of  the  United  States,  should  Congress  deem  it  expedient  to 
fix  it  on  the  banks  of  the  Patowmack;  and  whereas  Congress  have 
passed  an  act  for  establishing  the  said  seat  of  government  on  the 
Patowmack — 

"Be  it  enacted  by  the  general  assembly  (of  Virginia),  That  120,000 
dollars  shall  be  advanced  bv  this  Commonwealth  to  the  General  Gov- 


84  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT   OF    COLUMBIA. 

eminent,  payable  in  three  equal  yearly  payments,  and  to  be  applied 
toward  erecting  public  buildings  at  the  permanent  seat  of  government 
of  the  United  States  on  the  banks  of  the  Patowmack,  and  the  auditor 
of  public  accounts  is  hereby  directed  to  issue  his  warrants  on  the 
treasurer  to  the  amount  of  120,000  dollars,  payable  in  the  manner  here- 
inbefore directed,  to  the  order  of  the  President  of  the  United  States." 
Passed  December  27,  1790. 


APPENDIX  6. 

[SEAL.]     GEORGE  WASHINGTON,  President  of  the  United  States. 

To  all  who  shall  see  these  presents,  greeting: 

Know  ye,  that  reposing  special  trust  and  confidence  in  the  integritj*, 
skill,  and  diligence  of  Thos.  Johnson  and  Daniel  Carroll,  of  Maryland, 
and  David  Stuart,  of  Virginia,  I  do,  in  pursuance  of  the  powers  vested 
in  me  by  the  act  entitled  "An  act  for  establishing  the  temporary  and 
permanent  seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States,"  approved 
Jury  16,  1790,  hereby  appoint  them,  the  said  Thomas  Johnson,  Daniel 
Carroll,  and  David  Stuart,  commissioners  for  surveying  the  district  of 
territory  accepted  by  the  said  act  for  the  permanent  seat  of  the  Govern- 
ment of  the  United  States,  and  for  performing  such  other  offices  as  by 
law  are  directed,  with  full  authority  for  them,  or  any  two  of  them,  to 
proceed  therein  according  to  law,  and  to  have  and  to  hold  the  said 
office,  with  all  the  powers,  privileges,  and  authorities  to  the  same  of 
right  appertaining  each  of  them,  during  the  pleasure  of  the  President 
of  the  United  States  for  the  time  being. 

In  testimony  whereof  I  have  caused  these  letters  to  be  made  patent 
and  the  seal  of  the  United  States  thereto  affixed. 

Given  under  my  hand  at  the  city  of  Philadelphia,  the  twenty-second 
day  of  January,  in  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  seven  hundred  and 
ninety-one  and  of  the  Independence  of  the  United  States  the  fifteenth. 

GEORGE  WASHINGTON. 

By  the  President: 

THOMAS  JEFFERSON. 


APPENDIX  7. 

AN  ACT  to  amend  "An  act  for  establishing  the  temporary  and  permanent  seat  of  the 
Government  of  the  United  States." 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  tJie 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  so  much  of  the 
act  entitled  "An  act  for  establishing  the  tempora^  and  permanent 
seat  of  the  government  of  the  United  States"  as  requires  that  the 
whole  of  the  district  of  territory,  not  exceeding  ten  miles  square,  to  be 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF   COLUMBIA.  85 

located  on  the  river  Potomac,  for  the  permanent  seat  of  the  govern- 
ment of  the  United  States,  shall  be  located  above  the  mouth  of  the 
Eastern  Branch,  be  and  is  hereby  repealed,  and  that  it  shall  be  lawful 
for  the  President  to  make  any  part  of  the  territory  below  the  said 
limit,  and  above  the  mouth  of  Hunting  Creek,  a  part  of  the  said  dis- 
trict, so  as  to  include  a  convenient  part  of  the  Eastern  Branch,  and  of 
the  lands  lying  on  the  lower  side  thereof,  and  also  the  town  of  Alex- 
andria, and  the  territory  so  to  be  included,  shall  form  a  part  of  the 
district  not  exceeding  ten  miles  square,  for  the  permanent  seat  of  the 
Government  of  the  United  States,  in  like  manner  and  to  all  intents  and 
purposes  as  if  the  same  had  been  within  the  purview  of  the  above- 
recited  act:  Provided,  That  nothing  herein  contained  shall  authorize 
the  erection  of  the  public  buildings  otherwise  than  on  the  Maryland 
side  of  the  river  Potomac,  as  required  by  the  aforesaid  act. 
Approved  March  3,  1791.  (1  Stats!,  214.) 


APPENDIX  8. 

On  March  28,  1791,  President  Washington  reached  Georgetown, 
and  on  the  29th  he  rode  over  the  proposed  site  of  the  Federal  city, 
in  company  with  the  three  Commissioners  and  the  two  surveyors, 
Andrew  Ellicott  and  Maj.  Peter  Charles  L'Enfant. 

On  the  evening  of  the  same  day  a  meeting  was  held  for  the  purpose 
of  effecting  a  friendly  agreement  between  the  proprietors  of  the  lands 
constituting  the  site  of  the  Federal  city  and  the  United  States  commis- 
sioners, and  Washington's  good  counsel  on  that  occasion  had  so  favor- 
able an  effect  that  the  general  features  were  settled  that  very  evening 
for  the  agreement,  which  was  signed  and  executed  by  nineteen  property 
holders  the  next  day,  and  thereby  the  rights  of  and  titles  to  property 
within  this  District  and  city  may  be  said  to  have  been  decided  on  that 
evening. 

This  agreement,  which  was  accepted  by  the  Commissioners  and 
recorded  in  their  books  on  April  12,  1791,  was  as  follows: 

We,  the  subscribers,  in  consideration  of  the  great  benefits  we  expect  to  derive  from 
having  the  Federal  city  laid  off  upon  our  lands,  do  hereby  agree  and  bind  ourselves, 
heirs,  executors,  and  administrators,  to  convey,  in  trust,  to  the  President  of  the 
United  States,  or  commissioners,  or  such  person  or  persons  as  he  shall  appoint,  by 
good  and  sufficient  deeds,  in  fee  simple,  the  whole  of  our  respective  lands  which  he 
may  think  proper  to  include  within  the  lines  of  the  Federal  city,  for  the  purposes  and 
on  the  conditions  following: 

The  President  shall  have  the  sole  power  of  directing  the  Federal  city  to  be  laid  off 
in  what  manner  he  pleases. 

He  may  retain  any  number  of  squares  he  may  think  proper  for  public  improve- 
ments, or  other  public  uses;  and  the  lots  only  which  shall  be  laid  off  shall  be  a  joint 
property  between  the  trustees  on  behalf  of  the  public  and  each  present  proprietor, 


86  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

and  the  same  shall  be  fairly  and  equally  divided  between  the  public  and  the  indi- 
viduals, as  soon  as  may  be,  the  city  shall  be  laid  off. 

For  the  streets  the  proprietors  shall  receive  no  compensation;  but  for  the  squares 
or  lands  ki  any  form,  which  shall  be  taken  for  public  buildings,  or  any  kind  of  pub- 
lic improvements  or  uses,  the  proprietors  whose  lands  shall  be  taken  shall  receive  at 
the  rate  of  25  pounds  per  acre,  to  be  paid  \)y  the  public. 

The  whole  wood  on  the  lands  shall  be  the  property  of  the  proprietors,  and  should 
any  be  desired  by  the  President  to  be  reserved  or  left  standing,  the  same  shall  be 
paid  for  by  the  public  at  a  just  and  reasonable  valuation,  exclusive  of  the  £25  per 
acre  to  be  paid  for  the  land  on  which  the  same  shall  remain. 

Each  proprietor  shall  retain  the  full  possession  and  use  of  his  land  until  the  same 
shall  be  sold  and  occupied  by  the  purchase  of  the  lots  laid  out  thereon,  and  in  all 
cases  where  the  public  arrangements  as  the  streets,  lots,  etc.,  will  admit  of  it,  each 
proprietor  shall  possess  his  buildings  and  other  improvements  and  graveyards,  pay- 
ing to  the  public  only  one-half  the  present  estimated  value  of  the  land,  on  which 
the  same  shall  be,  or  £12  lOsh.  per  acre;  but  in  cases  where  the  arrangements  of 
the  streets,  lots,  squares,  etc.,  will  not  admit  of  this,  and  it  shall  become  necessary  to 
remove  such  buildings,  etc. ,  the  proprietors  of  the  same  shall  be  paid  the  reasonable 
value  thereof  by  the  public. 

Nothing  herein  contained  shall  affect  the  lots  any  of  the  parties  to  this  agreement 
may  hold  in  the  towns  of  Hamburgh  or  Carrolsburg. 

In  witness  whereof  we  have  hereunto  set  our  hands  and  seals  this  30th  day  of 
March,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  1791. 

ROBERT  PETER.  [SEAL.] 

DAVID  BURNES.  [SEAL.] 

JAS.  M.  LINGAN.  [SEAL.] 

URIAH  FORREST.  [SEAL.] 

BENJAMIN  STODDERT.  [SEAL.] 

NOTLEY  YOUNG.  [SEAL.] 

DANIEL  CARROLL  OF  DUDDINGTON.     [SEAL.] 
OVERTON  CARR.  [SEAL.] 

THOMAS  BEALE  OF  GEORGE.  [SEAL.} 

CHAS.  BEATTY.  [SEAL.] 

ANTHONY  HOLMEAD.  [SEAL.] 

WM.  YOUNG.  [SEAL.] 

EDWARD  PIERCE.  [SEAL.] 

ABRAHAM  YOUNG.  [SEAL.] 

JAS.  PIERCE.  [SEAL.] 

WM.  PROUT.  [SEAL.] 

ROBERT  PETER,  [SEAL.] 

As  Attorney  in  Fact  for  Eliphas  Douglass. 
BENJAMIN  STODDERT.  [SEAL.] 

For  Jos.  Warren,,  by  written  authority  from  W.  Warren. 
WM.  KING.  [SEAL.] 

Signed  and  sealed  in  presence  of  Mr.  Thomas  Beale,  making  an  exception  of  the 
land  he  sold  A.  C.  Young  not  yet  conveyed. 
Witness  to  all  subscribers,  including  Wm.  Young. 

WM.  BAILEY. 

WM.  ROBERTSON. 

JOHN  LUTER. 

SAM.  DAVIDSON  (witness  to  Abraham  Young  signing). 

BENJAMIN  STODDERT  (witness  to  Pierce' s  signing). 

JOSEPH  E.  ROWLES  (for  Jno.  Warring). 

WM.  DEAKING,  Jr.  (for  Wm.  Prout  and  Wm.  King). 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DIS1EICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  87 

APPENDIX  9. 

Whereas,  by  proclamation  bearing  date  the  24th  day  of  Jan.,  of  this 
present  year,  and  in  pursuance  of  certain  acts  of  the  States  of  Mar}T- 
land  and  Virginia  and  the  Congress  of  the  United  States,  therein 
mentioned,  certain  lines  of  experiment  were  directed  to  be  run  in  the 
neighborhood  of  Georgetown,  in  Maryland,  for  the  purpose  of  locat- 
ing a  part  of  the  territory  of  ten  miles  square,  for  the  permanent  seat 
of  government  of  the  United  States,  and  a  certain  part  was  directed  to 
be  located  within  the  said  lines  of  experiment  on  both  sides  of  the 
Potomac,  and  above  the  limits  of  the  Eastern  Branch,  prescribed  by 
the  said  act  of  Congress; 

And  Congress,  by  an  amendatory  act,  passed  on  the  3d  day  of  this 
present  month  of  March,  have  given  further  authority  to  the  President 
of  the  United  States  "  to  make  any  part  of  the  said  territory  below  the 
said  limit  and  above  the  mouth  of  Hunting  Creek  apart  of  said  district, 
so  as  to  include  a  convenient  part  of  the  Eastern  Branch ,  and  of  the 
lands  lying  on  the  lower  side  thereof,  and  also  the  town  of  Alexandria:" 

Now,  therefore,  for  the  purpose  of  amending  and  completing  the 
location  of  the  whole  of  said  territory  of  ten  miles  square,  in  conform- 
ity with  the  said  amendatory  act  of  Congress,  I  do  hereby  declare  and 
make  known  that  the  whole  of  the  said  territory  shall  be  located  and 
included  within  the  four  lines  following,  that  is  to  say : 

Beginning  at  Jones's  Point,  being  the  upper  cape  of  Hunting  Creek, 
in  Virginia,  and  at  an  angle  in  the  outset  of  forty-five  degrees  west  of 
the  north,  and  running  in  a  direct  line  ten  miles,  for  the  first  line;  then 
beginning  again  at  the  same  Jones's  Point,  and  running  another  direct 
line,  at  a  right  angle  with  the  first,  across  the  Potomac  ten  miles,  for 
the  second  line;  thence  from  the  termination  of  said  first  and  second 
lines,  running  two  other  lines  of  ten  miles  each,  the  one  crossing  the 
Eastern  Branch  aforesaid  and  the  other  the  Potomac,  and  meeting  each 
other  in  a  point. 

And  1  do  accordingly  direct  the  commissioners  named  under  the 
authority  of  the  said  first-mentioned  act  of  Congress  to  proceed  forth- 
with to  have  the  said  four  lines  run,  and  by  proper  metes  and  bounds 
defined  and  limited,  and  thereof  to  make  due  report,  under  their  hands 
and  seals;  and  the  territory  so  to  be  located,  defined,  and  limited  shall 
be  the  whole  territory  accepted  by  the  said  act  of  Congress  as  the  dis- 
trict for  the  permanent  seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States. 

In  testimony  whereof  I  have  caused  the  seal  of  the  United  States  to  be 
affixed  to  these  presents,  and  signed  the  same  with  my  own  hand.  Done 
at  Georgetown  aforesaid  the  30th  day  of  March,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord 
1791,  and  of  the  Independence  of  the  United  States  the  fifteenth. 

[SEAL.]  GEORGE  WASHINGTON. 

By  the  President: 

THOMAS  JEFFERSON. 


88  GOVERNMENT  OF  THE  DISTRICT  OF  COLUMBIA. 

APPENDIX  10. 

In  pursuance  of  the  act  of  16th  of  July,  1790,  three  commissioners 
were  appointed,  who  proceeded  to  locate  the  district  of  10  miles  square 
agreeably  to  the  following  proclamation  of  the  President: 

BY  THE  PRESIDENT  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES  or  AMERICA. 
A  PROCLAMATION. 

Whereas  the  general  assembly  of  the  State  of  Maryland,  by  an  act 
passed  on  the  23d  day  of  December,  1788,  entitled,  "An  act  to  cede  to 
Congress  a  district  of  ten  miles  square  in  this  State  for  the  seat  of 
Government  of  the  United  States,"  did  enact,  that  the  representatives 
of  the  said  State  in  the  House  of  Representatives  of  the  Congress  of 
the  United  States,  appointed  to  assemble  at  New  York  on  the  first 
Wednesda}"  of  March  then  next  ensuing,  should  be, » and  they  were 
thereby,  authorized  and  required,  on  the  behalf  of  the  said  State,  to 
cede  to  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  any  district  in  the  said 
State  not  exceeding  ten  miles  square,  which  the  Congress  might  fix 
upon  and  accept  for  the  seat  of  Government  of  the  United  States. 

And  the  general  assembly  of  the  Commonwealth  of  Virginia,  l>\  an 
act  passed  on  the  3d  day  of  December,  1789,  and  entitled  ;'An  act  for 
the  cession  of  ten  miles  square,  or  any  lesser  quantity  of  territory 
within  this  State,  to  the  United  States  in  Congress  assembled,  for  the 
permanent  seat  of  the  General  Government,  "  did  enact,  that  a  tract 
of  country  not  exceeding  ten  square  miles,  or  any  lesser  quantity,  to  be 
located  within  the  limits  of  the  said  State,  and  in  any  part  thereof,  as 
Congress  might  by  law  direct,  should  be  and  the  same  was  thereby 
forever  ceded  and  relinquished  to  the  Congress  and  Government  of  the 
United  States,  in  full  and  absolute  right,  and  exclusive  jurisdiction, 
as  well  of  soil  as  of  persons  residing  or  to  reside  thereon,  pursuant  to 
the  tenor  and  effect  of  the  eighth  section  of  the  first  article  of  the 
Constitution  of  Government  of  the  United  States: 

And  the  Congress  of  the  United  States,  by  their  act  passed  the  16th 
day  of  July,  1790,  and  entitled  "An  act  for  establishing  the  tempo- 
rary and  permanent  seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States," 
authorized  the  President  of  the  United  States  to  appoint  three  com- 
missioners to  survey  under  his  direction,  and  by  proper  metes  and 
bounds  to  limit  a  district  of  territory  not  exceeding  ten  miles  square 
on  the  river  Potomac,  at  some  place  between  the  mouth  of  the  Eastern 
Branch  and  Conococheague,  which  district,  so  to  be  located  and 
limited,  was  accepted  by  the  said  act  of  Congress  as  the  district  for 
the  permanent  seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States. 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT   OF    COLUMBIA.  89 

Now,  therefore,  in  pursuance  of  the  powers  to  me  confided,  and 
after  duly  examining  and  weighing  the  advantages  and  disadvantage* 
of  the  several  situations  within  the  limits  aforesaid,  I  do  hereby 
declare  and  make  known  that  the  location  of  one  part  of  the  said  dis- 
trict of  ten  miles  square  shall  be  found  by  running  four  lines  of  exper- 
iment in  the  following  manner,  that  is  to  say:  Running  from  the 
court-house  of  Alexandria,  in  Virginia,  due  southwest  half  a  mile,  and 
thence  a  due  southeast  course  till  it  shall  strike  Hunting  Creek,  to  fix 
the  beginning  of  the  said  four  lines  of  experiment. 

Then  beginning  the  first  of  the  said  four  lines  of  experiment  at  the 
point  on  Hunting  Creek,  where  the  said  southeast  course  shall  have 
struck  the  same,  and  running  the  said  first  line  due  northwest  ten 
miles;  thence  the  second  into  Maryland,  due  northeast  ten  miles; 
thence  the  third  line  due  southeast  ten  miles;  and  thence  the  fourth 
line  due  southwest  ten  miles,  to  the  beginning  on  Hunting  Creek. 

And  the  said  four  lines  of  experiment  being  .so  run,  1  do  hereby 
declare  and  make  known  that  all  that  part  within  the  said  four  lines 
of  experiment  which  shall  be  within  the  State  of  Maryland,  and  above 
the  Eastern  Branch,  and  all  that  part  within  the  same  four  lines  of 
experiment  which  shall  be  within  the  Commonwealth  of  Virginia,  and 
above  a  line  to  be  run  from  the  point  of  land  forming  the  Upper  Cape 
of  the  mouth  of  the  Eastern  Branch  due  southwest,  and  no  more,  is 
now  fixed  upon,  and  directed  to  be  surveyed,  defined,  limited,  and 
located  for  a  part  of  the  said  district  accepted  by  the  said  act  of  Con- 
gress for  the  permanent  seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States; 
hereby  expressly  reserving  the  direction  of  the  survey  and  location  of 
the  remaining  part  of  the  said  district,  to  be  made  hereafter  contiguous 
to  such  part  or  parts  of  the  present  location  as  is  or  shall  be  agreeably 
to  law. 

And  I  do  accordingly  direct  the  said  commissioners,  appointed 
agreeably  to  the  tenor  of  the  said  act,  to  proceed  forthwith  to  run 
the  said  lines  of  experiment,  and,  the  same  being  run,  to  survey  and, 
by  proper  metes  and  bounds,  to  define  and  limit  the  part  within  the 
same  which  is  hereinbefore  directed  for  immediate  location  and  accept- 
ance, and  thereof  to  make  due  report  to  me  under  their  hands  and 
seals. 

In  testimony  whereof  I  have  caused  the  seal  of  the  United  States 
to  be  affixed  to  these  presents,  and  signed  the  same  with  my  hand. 
Done  at  the  city  of  Philadelphia  the  24th  day  of  January,  in  the  year 
of  our  Lord  1791,  and  of  the  Independence  of  the  United  States  the 
fifteenth. 

GEORGE  WASHINGTON. 

By  the  President: 

THOMAS  JEFFERSON. 


90  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

APPENDIX  10A. 

BY  THE  PRESIDENT  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES. 
A  PROCLAMATION. 

Whereas  by  a  proclamation  bearing  date  the  24th  day  of  January 
of  this  present  year,  and  in  pursuance  of  certain  acts  of  the  States  of 
Maryland  and  Virginia  and  of  the  Congress  of  the  United  States 
therein  mentioned,  certain  lines  of  experiment  were  directed  to  be  run 
in  the  neighborhood  of  George  Town,  in  Maryland,  for  the  purpose 
of  determining  the  location  of  a  part  of  the  territory  of  ten  miles 
square  for  the  permanent  seat  of  government  of  the  United  States, 
and  a  certain  part  was  directed  to  be  located  within  the  said  lines  of 
experiment  on  both  sides  of  the  Potomac  and  above  the  limit  of  the 
Eastern  Branch,  prescribed  by  the  said  act  of  Congress; 

And  Congress,  by  an  amendatory  act  passed  on  the  3d  day  of  this 
present  month  of  March,  have  given  further  authority  to  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States  "to  make  any  part  of  the  said  territory 
below  the  said  limit  and  above  the  mouth  of  Hunting  Creek  a  part  of 
the  said  district,  so  as  to  include  a  convenient  part  of  the  Eastern 
Branch  and  of  the  lands  lying  on  the  lower  side  thereof,  and  also  the 
town  of  Alexandria;" 

Now,  therefore,  for  the  purpose  of  amending  and  completing  the 
location  of  the  whole  of  the  said  territory  of  ten  miles  square,  in 
conformity  with  the  said  amendatory  act  of  Congress,  I  do  herebjr 
declare  and  make  known  that  the  whole  of  the  said  territory  shall  be 
located  and  included  within  the  four  lines  following,  that  is  to  say: 

Beginning  at  Jones'  Point,  being  the  upper  cape  of  Hunting  Creek, 
in  Virginia,  and  at  an  angle  in  the  outset  of  45  degrees  west  of  the 
north,  and  running  in  a  direct  line  ten  miles  for  the  first  line;  then 
beginning  again  at  the  same  Jones'  Point,  and  running  another  direct 
line  at  a  right  angle  with  the  first  across  the  Potomac  ten  miles  for  the 
second  line;  then  from  the  terminations  of  the  said  first  and  second 
lines  running  two  other  direct  lines  of  ten  miles  each,  the  one  across 
the  Eastern  Branch  aforesaid  and  the  other  the  Potomac,  and  meeting 
each  other  in  a  point. 

And  1  do  accordingly  direct  the  commissioners,  named  under  the 
authority  of  the  said  first  mentioned  act  of  Congress,  to  proceed  forth- 
with to  have  the  said  four  lines  run,  and  by  proper  metes  and  bounds 
defined  and  limited,  and  thereof  to  make  due  report  under  their  hands 
and  seals;  and  the  territory  so  to  be  located,  defined,  and  limited  shall 
be  the  whole  territory  accepted  by  the  said  act  of  Congress  as  the 
district  for  the  permanent  seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United 
States. 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  91 

In  testimony  whereof  I  have  caused  the  seal  of  the  United  States 
to  be  affixed  to  these  presents,  and  signed  the  same  with  my  hand. 
Done  at  George-Town  aforesaid,  the  30th  day  of  March,  in  the  year 
•of  our  Lord  1791,  and  of  the  Independence  of  the  United  States  the 
fifteenth. 

GEORGE  WASHINGTON. 
By  the  President: 

THOMAS  JEFFERSON. 


APPENDIX  11. 

On  or  about  the  29th  of  June,  1791,  nineteen  original  proprietors  of 
the  greater  parts  of  the  lands  which  now  constitute  the  city  of  Wash- 
ington conveyed  them  in  trust,  by  deeds  in  the  following  form,  viz: 

[Copy  of  the  deed  in  trust  from  an  original  proprietor  of  the  ground  on  which  the  city  of  Washington 
is  located  to  the  trustees  appointed  by  authority  of  the  United  States  to  receive  the  same.] 

This  indenture,  made  this  29th  day  of  June,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord 
one  thousand  seven  hundred  and  ninet3r-one,  between  (here  is  inserted 
the  name  of  the  grantor),  of  the  State  of  Mainland,  of  the  one  part, 
and  Thomas  Beall,  of  George,  and  John  M.  Gantt,  of  the  State  of 
Maryland,  of  the  other  part,  witnesseth:  That  the  said  - 
{the  grantor),  for  and  in  consideration  of  the  sum  of  five  shillings,  to  him 
in  hand  paid  by  the  same  Thomas  Beall,  of  George,  and  John  M.  Gantt, 
before  the  sealing  and  delivery  of  these  presents,  the  receipt  whereof 
he  doth  hereby  acknowledge,  and  thereof  doth  acquit  the  said  Thomas 
Beall,  of  George,  and  John  M.  Gantt,  their  executors  and  adminis- 
trators: and  also,  for  and  in  consideration  of  the  uses  and  trust  here- 
inafter mentioned,  to  be  performed  by  the  said  Thomas  Beall,  of 
George,  and  John  M.  Gantt,  and  the  survivor  of  them,  and  the  heirs 
of  such  survivor,  according  to  the  true  intent  and  meaning  thereof, 
hath  granted,  bargained,  sold,  aliened,  released,  and  confirmed,  and  by 
these  presents  doth  grant,  bargain,  sell,  alien,  release,  and  confirm  unto 
the  said  Thomas  Beall,  of  George,  and  John  M.  Gantt,  and  the  survivor 
of  them,  and  the  heirs  of  such  survivor,  all  the  lands  of  him,  the  said 
(grantor)  lying  and  being  within  the  following  limits,  boundaries,  and 
lines,  to  wit:  Beginning  on  the  east  side  of  Rock  Creek,  at  a  stone  stand- 
ing in  the  middle  of  the  main  road  leading  from  Georgetown  to  Bladens- 
burg;  thence  along  the  middle  of  the  said  road  to  a  stone  standing  on  the 
east  side  of  the  Reedy  Branch  of  Goose  Creek;  thence  southeasterly, 
making  an  angle  of  61  degrees  and  twenty  minutes  with  the  meridian,  to 
a  stone  standing  in  the  road  leading  from  Bladensburg  to  the  Eastern 
Branch  ferry;  thence  south,  to  a  stone  eighty  poles  north  of  the  east 
and  west  line  already  drawn  from  the  mouth  of  Goose  Creek,  to  the 
Eastern  Branch;  then  east,  parallel  to  the  said  east-and-west  line,  to  the 


92  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

Eastern  Branch;  thence  by  and  with  the  waters  of  the  Eastern  Branch, 
Potomac  River,  and  Rock  Creek  to  the  beginning,  with  their  appur- 
tenances, except  all  and  every  lot  and  lots  of  which  the  said  - 

-  (the  grantor)  is  seized  or  to  which  he  is  entitled  in  Carrolls- 
burg  or  Hamburg;  to  have  and  to  hold  the  hereby  bargained  and 
sold  lands  with  their  appurtenances  to  the  said  Thomas  Beall  of 
George  and  John  M.  Gantt,  and  the  survivor  of  them,  and  the  heirs 
of  such  survivor  forever:  To  and  for  the  special  trust  following,  and 
no  other;  that  is  to  say:  That  all  the  said  lands  hereby  bargained  and 
sold,  or  such  part  thereof  as  may  be  thought  necessary  or  proper  to 
be  laid  out,  together  with  other  lands  within  the  said  limits,  for  a 
Federal  city,  with  such  streets,  squares,  parcels,  and  lots  as  the 
President  of  the  United  States  for  the  time  being  shall  approve* 
and  that  the  said  Thomas  Beall  of  George  and  John  M.  Gantt,  or  the 
survivor  of  them,  or  the  heirs  of  such  survivor  shall  convey  to  the 
Commissioners  for  the  time  being,  appointed  by  virtue  of  the  act  of 
Congress  entitled  "An  act  for  establishing  the  temporary  and  perma- 
ment  seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States,"  and  their  suc- 
cessors, for  the  use  of  the  United  States  forever,  all  the  said  streets 
and  such  of  the  said  squares,  parcels,  and  lots  as  the  President  shall 
deem  proper,  for  the  use  of  the  United  States;  and  that  as  to  the  residue 
of  the  said  lots,  into  which  the  said  lands  hereby  bargained  and  sold 
shall  have  been  laid  off  and  divided,  that  a  fair  and  equal  division  of 
them  shall  be  made.  And  if  no  other  mode  of  division  shall  be  agreed 
on  by  consent  of  the  said  —  —  (the  grantor)  and  the  Commis- 

sioners for  the  time  being,  then  such  residue  of  the  said  lots  shall  be 
divided,  every  other  lot  alternate  to  the  said  -  -  (the 

grantor),  and  it  shall,  in  that  event,  be  determined  by  lot,  whether 
the  said  -  -  (the  grantor)  shall  begin  with  the  lot  of  the 

lowest  number  laid  out  on  the  said  lands  or  the  following  number. 

And  all  the   said   lots  which    may  in   any  manner   be   divided  or 
assigned  to  the  said  -  -  (the  grantor)   shall,  thereupon, 

together  with  any  part  of  the  bargained  and  sold  lands,  if  any,  which 
shall  not  have  been  laid  out  in  the  said  city,  be  conveyed  by  the  said 
Thomas  Beall  of  George  and  John  M.  Gantt,  or  the  survivor  of  them, 
or  the  heirs  of  such  survivor,  to  him,  the  said  -  -  (the 

grantor),  his  heirs  and  assigns.  And  that  the  said  other  lots  shall  and 
may  be  sold  at  such  time  or  times,  in  such  manner,  and  on  such  terms 
and  conditions  as  the  President  of  the  United  States  for  the  time  being 
shall  direct;  and  that  the  said  Thomas  Beall  of  George  and  John  M. 
Gantt,  or  the  survivor  of  them,  or  the  heirs  of  such  survivor,  will,  on 
the  order  and  direction  of  the  President,  convey  all  the  said  lots  so 
sold  and  ordered  to  be  conveyed  to  the  respective  purchasers  in  fee 
simple,  according  to  the  terms  and  conditions  of  such  purchases ;  and  the 
produce  of  the  sales  of  the  said  lots  when  sold  as  aforesaid  shall  in  the 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE   DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  93 

first  place  be  applied  to  the  payment  in  money  to  the  said  - 
(the  grantor),  his  executors,  administrators,  or  assigns,  for  all  the  part 
of  the  land  hereby  bargained  and  sold  which  shall  have  been  laid  off 
into  lots,  squares,  or  parcels,  and  appropriated  as  aforesaid  to  the  use 
of  the  United  States,  at  the  rate  of  twenty -five  pounds  per  acre,  not 
accounting  the  said  streets  as  part  thereof. 

And  the  said  twenty-five  pounds  per  acre,  being  so  paid,  or  in  any 
other  manner  satisfied,  that1  then  the  produce  of  the  same  sale,  or 
what  thereof  may  remain  as  aforesaid,  in  money  or  securities  of  any 
kind,  shall  be  paid,  assigned,  transferred,  and  delivered  over  to  the 
President  of  the  United  States,  for  the  time  being,  as  a  grant  of 
money,  and  to  be  applied  for  the  purposes  and  according  to  the  act  of 
Congress  aforesaid.  But  the  said  conveyance  to  the  said  - 
(the  grantor),  his  heirs  or  assigns,  as  well  as  the  conveyance  to  the 
purchasers,  shall  be  on,  and  subject  to  such  terms  and  conditions  as 
shall  be  thought  reasonable,  by  the  President,  for  the  time  being,  for 
regulating  the  materials  and  manner  of  the  buildings  and  improve- 
ments on  the  lots,  generally,  in  the  said  city,  or  in  particular  streets, 
or  parts  thereof,  for  common  convenience,  safety,  and  order:  Provided, 
Such  terms  and  conditions  be  declared  before  the  sales  of  any  of  the 
said  lots,  under  the  direction  of  the  President.  And  in  trust  further, 
and  on  the  agreement  that  the  said  -  -  (the  grantor),  his 

heirs  or  assigns,  shall  and  may  continue  his  possession  and  occupation 
of  the  said  lands  hereby  bargained  and  sold,  at  his  and  their  will  and 
pleasure,  until  they  shall  be  occupied  under  the  said  appropriations 
for  the  use  of  the  United  States  as  aforesaid,  or  by  purchasers;  and 
when  any  lots  or  parcels  shall  be  occupied  under  purchase  or  appro- 
priations as  aforesaid,  then,  and  not  until  then,  shall  the  said  - 

-  (the  grantor)  relinquish  his  occupation  thereof.  And  in  trust 
also,  as  to  the  trees,  timber,  and  wood,  on  the  premises,  that  he  the 
said  -  —  (the  grantor)  his  heirs  or  assigns,  may  freely  cut 

down,  take,  and  carry  away,  and  use  the  same  as  his  and  their  prop- 
erty, except  such  of  the  trees  and  wood  growing  as  the  President  or 
commissioners  aforesaid  may  judge  proper,  and  give  notice,  shall  be 
left  for  ornaments,  for  which  the  just  and  reasonable  value  shall  be 
paid  to  the  said  -  -  (the  grantor),  his  executors,  adminis- 

trators, or  assigns,  exclusive  of  the  twenty -five  pounds  per  acre  for 
the  land. 

And  in  case  the  arrangements  of  the  streets,  lots,  and  the  like  will 
conveniently  admit  of  it,  he  the  said  -  -  (the  grantor),  his 

heirs  or  assigns,  if  he  so  desire  it,  shall  possess  and  retain  his  buildings 
and  graveyard,  if  any,  on  the  hereby  bargained  and  sold  land,  paying 
to  the  President  at  the  rate  of  twelve  pounds  ten  shillings  per  acre 
for  the  lands  so  retained,  because  of  such  buildings  and  graveyards, 
to  be  applied  as  aforesaid,  and  the  same  shall  thereupon  be  conveyed 


94  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

to  the  said  -  — -  (the  grantor),  his  heirs  or  assigns,  with  his 

lots.  But  if  the  arrangements  of  the  streets,  lots,  and  the  like  will 
not  conveniently  admit  of  such  retention,  and  it  shall  become  neces- 
sary to  remove  such  buildings,  then  the  said  —  —  (the  grantor), 
his  executors,  administrators,  or  assigns,  shall  be  paid  the  reasonable 
value  thereof  in  the  same  manner  as  squares  or  other  ground  appro- 
priated for  the  use  of  the  United  States  are  to  be  paid  for.  And  be- 
cause it  may  so  happen  that  by  deaths  or  removals  of  the  said  Thomas 
Beall,  of  George,  and  John  M.  Gantt,  and  from  other  causes,  difficul- 
ties may  occur  in  fully  perfecting  the  said  trusts,  by  executing  all  the 
said  conveyances,  if  no  eventual  provision  is  made,  it  is  therefore 
agreed  and  covenanted  between  all  the  said  parties,  that  the  said  Thomas 
Beall,  of  George,  and  John  M.  Gantt,  or  either  of  them,  or  the  heirs 
of  any  of  them,  lawfully  may,  and  that  they,  at  any  time,  at  the  request 
of  the  President  of  the  United  States  for  the  time  being,  will  convey 
all  or  any  of  the  said  lands  hereby  bargained  and  sold,  which  shall  not 
then  have  been  conveyed  in  execution  of  the  trusts  aforesaid,  to  such 
person  or  persons  as  he  shall  appoint,  in  fee  simple,  subject  to  the 
trusts  then  remaining  to  be  executed,  and  to  the  end  that  some  may 
be  perfected. 

And  it  is  further  granted  and  agreed  between  all  the  said  parties, 
and  each  of  the  said  parties  doth  for  himself,  respectively,  and  his 
heirs,  covenant  and  grant  to  and  with  the  others  of  them,  that  he  and 
they  shall  and  will,  if  required  by  the  President  of  the  United  States 
for  the  time  being,  join  in  and  execute  any  further  deed  or  deeds  for 
carrying  into  effect  the  trusts,  purposes,  and  true  intent  of  this  present 
deed.  In  witness  whereof  the  parties  to  these  presents  have  hereunto 
set  their  hands  and  affixed  their  seals  the  day  and  year  first  above 
written. 

Signed  by  the  grantor. 

— .     [SEAL.] 

Signed,  sealed,  and  delivered  in  the  presence  of— 


All  the  residue  of  the  lands  lying  within  the  bounds  of  the  city 
were,  by  an  act  of  the  legislature  of  Maryland,  passed  on  or  about  the 
19th  of  December,  1791,  vested  in  the  same  trustees,  and  subjected  to 
the  same  trusts. 


APPENDIX  12. 

GEORGETOWN,  September  9,  1791. 

SIR:  We  have  agreed  that  the  Federal  District  shall  be  called  "The 
Territory  of  Columbia,"  and  the  Federal  City  the  "chVy  of  Washing- 
ton." The  title  of  the  map  will,  therefore,  be,  "A  Map  of  the  City  of 
Washington  in  the  Territory  of  Columbia. " 


GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  95 

We  have  also  agreed  that  the  streets  be  named  alphabetically  one 
way  and  numerically  the  other,  the  former  to  be  divided  into  north 
and  south,  and  the  latter  into  east  and  west  numbers  from  the  Capitol. 
Major  Ellicott,  with  proper  assistance,  will  immediately  take,  and 
soon  furnish  you  with,  the  soundings  of  the  Eastern  Branch,  to  be 
inserted  in  the  map.  We  expect  he  will  also  furnish  you  with  the 
proposed  post  road,  which  we  wish  to  be  noticed  in  the  map. 
We  are,  respectfully,  yours, 

THOMAS  JOHNSON. 
DAVID  STUART. 
DANIEL  CARROLL. 
To  Major  L'ENFANT. 


APPENDIX  13. 
ACT  OF  MARYLAND  RATIFYING  THE  CESSION. 

AN  ACT  Concerning  the  Territory  of  Columbia  and  the  city  of  Washington. 
[Passed  December  19,  1791.] 

Whereas  the  President  of  the  United  States,  by  virtue  of  several 
acts  of  Congress,  and  acts  of  the  assemblies  of  Maryland  and  Virginia, 
by  his  proclamation,  dated  at  Georgetown  on  the  thirtieth  day  of 
March,  seventeen  hundred  and  ninety -one,  did  declare  and  make  known 
that  the  whole  of  the  territory  of  ten  miles  square,  for  the  permanent 
seat  of  government  of  the  United  States,  shall  be  located  and  included 
within  the  four  lines  following,  that  is  to  say:  Beginning  at  Jones 
Point,  being  the  upper  point  of  Hunting  Creek,  in  Virginia,  and  at  an 
angle  at  the  outset  forty-five  degrees  west  of  north,  and  running  a 
direct  line  ten  miles  for  the  first  line;  then  beginning  again  at  the 
same  Jones  Point  and  running  another  direct  line  at  a  right  angle  with 
the  first  across  the  Potomac  ten  miles  for  the  second  line;  then  from 
the  terminations  of  the  said  first  and  second  lines  running  two  other 
direct  lines  ten  miles  each,  the  one  across  the  Eastern  Branch  and  the 
other  Potomac,  and  meeting  each  other  in  a  point,  which  has  since 
been  called  the  Territory  of  Columbia;  and, 

Wrhereas  Notley  Young,  Daniel  Carroll,  of  Duddington,  and  many 
others,  proprietors  of  the  greater  part  of  the  land  hereinafter  men- 
tioned to  have  been  laid  out  in  a  city,  came  into  an  agreement,  and  have 
conveyed  their  lands  in  trust  to  Thomas  Beall,  son  of  George,  and  John 
Mackall  Gantt,  whereby  they  have  subjected  their  lands  to  be  laid  out 
as  a  city,  given  up  part  to  the  United  States,  and  subjected  other  parts 
to  be  sold  to  raise  money  as  a  donation  to  be  employed  according  to 
the  act  of  Congress  for  establishing  the  temporary  and  permanent 
seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United  States,  under  and  upon  the 
terms  and  conditions  contained  in  each  of  the  said  deeds;  and  many  of 
74986—09 7 


96  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

the  proprietors  of  lots  in  Carrollsburg  and  Hamburg  have  also  come 
into  an  agreement,  subjecting  their  lots  to  be  laid  out  anew,  giving  up 
one-half  of  the  quantity  thereof  to  be  sold,  and  the  money  thence  aris- 
ing to  be  applied  as  a  donation  as  aforesaid,  and  they  to  be  reinstated 
in  one-half  of  the  quantity  of  their  lots  in  the  new  location,  or  other- 
wise compensated  in  land  in  a  different  situation  within  the  city,  by 
agreement  between  the  Commissioners  and  them,  and  in  case  of  disa- 
greement, that  then  a  just  and  full  compensation  shall  be  made  in 
money;  yet  some  of  the  proprietors  in  Carrollsburg  and  Hamburg,  as 
well  as  some  of  the  proprietors  of  other  lands,  have  not,  from  imbecil- 
ity and  other  causes,  come  into  any  agreement  concerning  their  lands 
within  the  limits  hereinafter  mentioned,  but  a  very  great  number  of 
the  landholders  having  agreed  on  the  same  terms,  the  President  of  the 
United  States  directed  a  city  to  be  laid  out  comprehending  all  the  lands 
beginning  on  the  east  side  of  Rock  Creek,  at  a  stone  standing  in  the 
middle  of  the  road  leading  from  Georgetown  to  Bladensburgh;  thence 
along  the  middle  of  the  sajd  road  to  a  stone  standing  on  the  east  side 
of  the  Reedy  Branch  of  Goose  Creek;  thence  southeasterly,  making 
an  angle  of  sixty-one  degrees  and  twenty  minutes  with  the  meridian,  to  a 
stone  standing  in  the  road  leading  from  Bladensburgh  to  the  Eastern 
Branch  ferry;  then  south  to  a  stone  ninety  poles  north  of  the  east  and 
west  line  already  drawn  from  the  mouth  of  Goose  Creek  to  the  Eastern 
Branch;  then  east,  parallel  to  the  said  east  and  west  line,  to  the  Eastern 
Branch;  then  with  the  waters  of  the  Eastern  Branch,  Potomac  River, 
and  Rock  Creek  to  the  beginning,  which  has  since  been  called  the  City 
of  Washington;  and 

Whereas  it  appears  to  this  general  assembly  highly  just  and  expe- 
dient that  all  the  lands  within  the  said  city  should  contribute,  in  due 
proportion,  in  the  means  which  have  already  greatly  enhanced  the 
value  of  the  whole;  that  an  incontrovertible  title  ought  to  be  made  to 
the  purchasers,  under  public  sanction;  that  allowing  foreigners  to  hold 
land  within  the  said  territory  will  greatly  contribute  to  the  improve- 
ment and  population  thereof;  and  that  many  temporary  provisions 
will  be  necessary  till  Congress  exercise  the  jurisdiction  and  govern- 
ment over  the  said  territory;  and 

Whereas  in  the  cession  of  this  State,  heretofore  made,  of  territory 
for  the  Government  of  the  United  States,  the  lines  of  such  cession 
could  not  be  particularly  designated;  and  it  being  expedient  and  proper 
that  the  same  should  be  recognized  in  the  acts  of  this  State — 

2.  Be  it  enacted  by  the  General  Assembly  of  Maryland,  That  all  that 
part  of  the  said  territory  called  Columbia  which  lies  within  the  limits 
of  this  State  shall  be,  and  the  same  is  hereby,  acknowledged  to  be  for- 
ever ceded  and  relinquished  to  the  Congress  and  Government  of  the 
United  States,  and  full  and  absolute  right  and  exclusive  jurisdiction, 
as  well  of  soil  as  of  persons  residing  or  to  reside  thereon,  pursuant  to 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  97 

the  tenor  and  effect  of  the  eighth  section  of  the  first  article  of  the  Con- 
stitution of  Government  of  the  United  States:  Provided,  That  nothing 
herein  contained  shall  be  so  construed  to  vest  in  the  United  States  any 
right  of  property  in  the  soil  as  to  affect  the  rights  of  individuals 
therein,  otherwise  than  the  same  shall  or  may  be  transferred  by  such 
individuals  to  the  United  States:  And  provided  also,  That  the  juris- 
diction of  the  laws  of  this  State  over  the  persons  and  property  of  indi- 
viduals residing  within  the  limits  of  the  cession  aforesaid  shall  not 
cease  or  determine  until  Congress  shall,  by  law,  provide  for  the  gov- 
ernment thereof,  under  their  jurisdiction,  in  manner  provided  by  the 
article  of  the  Constitution  before  recited. 

3.  Andbe  it  enacted,  That  all  the  lands  belonging  to  minors,  persons 
absent  out  of  the  State,  married  women,  or  persons  non  compos  men- 
tis, or  the  lands  the  property  of  this  State,  within  the  limits  of  Car- 
rollsburg  and  Hamburg,  shall  be  and  are  hereb}^  subjected  to  the  terms 
and  conditions  hereinbefore  recited,  as  to  the  lots  where  the  proprie- 
tors thereof  have  agreed  concerning  the  same;  and  all  the  other  lands, 
belonging  as  aforesaid,  within  the  limits  of  the  said  city  of  Washing- 
ton, shall  be,  and  are  hereby,  subjected  to  the  same  terms  and  condi- 
tions as  the  said  Notley  Young,  Daniel  Carroll,  of  Duddington,  and 
others,  have,  by  their  said  agreements  and  deeds,  subjected  their  lands 
to,  and  where  no  conveyances  have  been  made,  the  legal  estate  and 
trust  are  hereby  invested  in  the  said  Thomas  Beall,  son  of  George, 
and  John  Mackall  Gantt,  in  the  same  manner  as  if  each  proprietor  had 
been  competent  to  make,  and  had  made  a  legal  conveyance  of  his  or 
her  land,  according  to  the  form  of  those  already  mentioned,  with  proper 
acknowledgments  of  the  execution  thereof,  and  where  necessary,  of 
release  of  dower,  and  in  every  case  where  the  proprietor  is  an  infant, 
a  married  woman,  insane,  absent  out  of  the  State,  or  shall  not  attend 
on  three  months'  advertisement  of  notice  in  the  Maryland  Journal 
and  Baltimore  Advertiser,  the  Maryland  Herald,  and  in  the  George- 
town and  Alexandria  papers,  so  that  allotment  can  not  take  place  by 
agreement,  the  commissioners,  aforesaid,  or  any  two  of  them,  may  allot 
or  assign  the  portion  or  share  of  such  proprietor  as  near  the  old  situ- 
ation as  may  be,  in  Carrollsburg  and  Hamburg,  and  to  the  full  value 
of  what  the  party  might  claim  under  the  terms  before  recited;  and 
as  to  the  other  lands  within  the  said  city,  the  commissioners  aforesaid, 
or  any  two  of  them,  shall  make  such  allotment  and  assignment,  within 
the  lands  belonging  to  the  same  person,  in  alternate  lots,  determined 
by  lot  or  ballot,  whether  the  party  shall  begin  with  the  lowest  number: 
Provided,  That  in  the  cases  of  coverture  and  infanc}7,  if  the  husband, 
guardian,  or  next  friend  will  agree  with  the  commissioners,  or  any 
two  of  them,  then  an  effectual  division  may  be  made  by  consent;  and 
in  case  of  contrary  claims,  if  the  claimants  will  not  jointly  agree,  the 
commissioners  may  proceed  as  if  the  proprietor  was  absent;  and  all 


98  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

persons  to  whom  allotments  and  assignments  of  lands  shall  be  made  by 
the  commissioners,  or  any  two  of  them,  on  consent  and  agreement,  or 
pursuant  to  this  act  without  consent,  shall  hold  the  same  in  their 
former  estate  and  interest,  and  in  lieu  of  their  former  quantity,  and 
subject  in  every  respect  to  all  such  limitations,  conditions,  and  incura- 
brances  as  their  former  estate  and  interest,  and  in  lieu  of  their  former 
quantity,  and  subject  in  every  respect  to  all  such  limitations,  condi- 
tions, incumbrances  as  their  former  estates  and  interests  were  subject 
to,  and  as  if  the  same  had  been  actually  reconveyed  pursuant  to  the 
said  deed  in  trust. 

4.  And  le  it  enacted,  That  where  the  proprietor  or  proprietors,  pos- 
sessor or  possessors,  of  any  lands  within  the  limits  of  the  city  of 
Washington,  or  within  the  limits  of  Carrollsburg  or  Hamburg,  who 
have  not  already,  or  who  shall  not,  within  three  months  of  this  act, 
execute  deeds  in  trust  to  the  aforesaid  Thomas  Beall  and  John  M. 
Gantt,  of  all  their  land  within  the  limits  of  the  said  city  of  Washing- 
ton, and  on  the  terms  and  conditions  mentioned  in  the  deeds  already 
executed  by  Notley  Young  and  others,  and  execute  deeds  in  trust  to 
the  said  Thomas  Beall  and  John  M.  Gantt  of  all  their  lots  in  the 
towns  of  Carrollsburg  and  Hamburg  on  the  same  terms  and  condi- 
tions contained  in  the  deeds  already  executed  by  the  greater  part  of 
the  proprietors  of  lots  in  the  said  towns,  the  said  commissioners,  or 
any  two  of  them,  shall  and  may,  at  any  time  or  times  thereafter,  issue 
a  process,  directed  to  the  sheriff  of  Prince  Georges  County,  com- 
manding him,  in  the  name  of  the  State,  to  summon  five  good  substan- 
tial freeholders,  who  are  not  of  kin  to  any  proprietor  or  proprietors 
of  the  lands  aforesaid,  and  who  are  not  proprietors  themselves,  to 
meet  on  a  certain  day,  and  at  a  certain  place  within  the  limits  of 
the  said  city,  to  inquire  of  the  value  of  the  estate  of  such  proprietor 
or  proprietors,  possessor  or  possessors,  on  which  day  and  place 
the  said  sheriff  shall  attend,  with  the  freeholders  by  him  summoned, 
which  freeholders  shall  take  the  following  oath,  or  affirmation,  on  the 
land  to  be  by  them  valued,  to  wit:  "I,  A.  B.,  do  solemnly  swear  (or 
affirm)  that  1  will,  to  the  best  of  my  judgment,  value  the  lands  of  C.  D. 
now  to  be  valued  so  as  to  do  equal  right  and  justice  to  the  said  C.  D. 
and  to  the  public,  taking  into  consideration  all  circumstances,"  and 
shall  then  proceed  to  value  the  said  lands;  and  such  valuation,  under 
their  hands  and  seals  and  under  the  hand  and  seal  of  the  said  sheriff, 
shall  be  annexed  to  the  said  process  and  returned  by  the  sheriff  to  the 
clerk  appointed  by  virtue  of  this  act,  who  shall  make  record  of  the 
same,  and  the  said  lands  shall,  on  the  payment  of  such  valuation,  be 
and  is  hereby  vested  in  the  said  commissioners  in  trust,  to  be  disposed 
of  by  them  or  otherwise  employed  to  the  use  of  the  said  city  of 
Washington ;  and  the  sheriff  aforesaid  and  freeholders  aforesaid  shall 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  99 

be  allowed  the  same  fees  for  their  trouble  as  are  allowed  to  a  sheriff 
and  juryman  in  executing  a  writ  of  inquiry;  and  in  all  cases  where 
the  proprietor  or  possessor  is  tenant  in 'right  of  dower  or  by  the 
courtesy  the  freeholders  aforesaid  shall  ascertain  the  annual  value  of 
the  lands  and  the  gross  value  of  such  estate  therein,  and  upon  pay- 
ing such  gross  value  or  securing  to  the  possessor  the  payment  of  the 
annual  valuation,  at  the  option  of  the  proprietor  or  possessor,  the 
commissioners  shall  be  and  are  hereby  vested  with  the  whole  estate  of 
such  tenant,  in  manner  and  for  the  uses  and  purposes  aforesaid. 

5.  And  be  it  enacted,  That  all  the  squares,  lots,  and  parcels  of  land 
within  the  said  city  which  have  been  or  shall  be  appropriated  for  the 
use  of  the  United  States,  and  all  the  lots  and  parcels  which  have  been 
or  shall  be  sold  to  raise  money  as  a  donation  as  aforesaid  shall  remain 
and  be  to  the  purchasers,  according  to  the  terms  and  conditions  of 
their  respective  purchase;  and  purchases  and  leases  from  private  per- 
sons claiming  to  be  proprietors,  and  having,  or  those  under  whom  they 
claim  having,  been  in  the  possession  of  the  lands  purchased  or  leased, 
in  their  own  right,  five  whole  years  next  before  the  passing  of  this 
act,  shall  be  good  and  effectual  for  the  estate,  and  on  the  terms  and 
conditions  of  such  purchases  and  leases,  respectively,  without  impeach- 
ment, and  against  any  contrary  title  now  existing;  but  if  any  person 
hath  made  a  conveyance,  or  shall  make  a  conveyance  or  lease,  of  any 
lands  within  the  said  city,  not  having  right  and  title  to  do  so,  the  per- 
son who  might  be  entitled  to  recover  the  land  under  a  contrary  title 
now  existing  may,  either  by  way  of  ejectment  against  the  tenant  or 
in  an  action  for  money  had  and  received  for  his  use  against  the  bar- 
gainer or  lessor,  his  heirs,  executors,  administrators,  or  devisees,  as 
the  case  may  require,  recover  all  money  received  by  him  for  the 
squares,  pieces,  or  parcels  appropriated  for  the  use  of  the  United 
States,  as  well  as  for  lots  or  parcels  sold  and  rents  received  by  the 
person  not  having  title  as  aforesaid,  with  interest  from  the  time  of 
receipt;  and,  on  such  recovery  in  ejectment,  where  the  land  is  in  lease, 
the  tenant  shall  thereafter  hold  under,  and  pay  the  rent  reserved  to, 
the  person  making  title  to  and  recovering  the  land;  but  the  possession 
bona  fide  acquired  in  none  of  the  said  cases  shall  be  changed. 

6.  And  be  it  enacted.  That  any  foreigner  may,  by  deed  or  will  here- 
after to  be  made,  take  and  hold  lands  within  that  part  of  the  said  terri- 
tory which  lies  within  this  State  in  the  same  manner  as  if  he  were  a 
citizen  of  this  State;  and  the  same  lands  may  be  conveyed  by  him,  and 
transmitted  to,  and  inherited  by  his  heirs  or  relations,  as  if  he  and 
they  were  citizens  of  this  State;  provided  that  no  foreigner  shall,  in 
virtue  hereof,  be  entitled  to  any  further  or  other  privilege  of  a  citizen. 

7.  And  be  it  enacted,  That  the  said  commissioners,  or  any  two  of 


100  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

them,  may  appoint  a  clerk  for  recording  deeds  of  land  within  the  said 
territory,  who  shall  provide  a  proper  book  for  the  purpose,  and  therein 
record,  in  a  strong,  legible  hand,  all  deeds  duly  acknowledged,  of  lands 
in  the  said  territory,  delivered  to  him  to  be  recorded,  and  in  the  same 
book  make  due  entries  of  all  divisions  and  allotments  of  lands  and  lots 
made  by  the  commissioners  in  pursuance  of  this  act,  and  certificates 
granted  b}^  them  of  sales,  and  the  purchase  money  having  been  paid, 
with  a  proper  alphabet  in  the  same  book  of  the  deeds  and  entries 
aforesaid;  and  the  same  book  shall  carefully  preserve  and  deliver  over 
to  the  commissioners  aforesaid,  or  their  successors,  or  such  person  or 
persons  as  Congress  shall  hereafter  appoint,  which  clerk  shall  continue 
such  during  good  behaviour,  and  shall  be  removable  only  on  a  convic- 
tion of  misbehaviour  in  a  court  of  law;  but  before  he  acts  as  such  he 
shall  take  an  oath  or  affirmation  well  and  truly  to  execute  his  office, 
and  he  shall  be  entitled  to  the  same  fees  as  are  or  may  be  allowed  to 
the  clerks  of  the  county  courts  for  searches,  copying,  and  recording. 

8.  And  be  it  enacted,  That  acknowledgments  of  deeds  made  before  a 
person  in  the  manner  and  certified  as  the  laws  of  this  State  direct, 
or  made  before,  and  certified  by,  either  of  the  commissioners  shall  be 
effectual;  and  that  no  deed  hereafter  to  be  made,  of  or  for  lands 
within  that  part  of  the  said  territory  which  lies  within  this  State,  shall 
operate  as  a  legal  conveyance,  nor  shall  uny  lease  for  more  than  seven 
years  be  effectual,  unless  the  deed  shall  have  been  acknowledged  as 
aforesaid,  and  delivered  to  the  said  clerk  to  be  recorded  within  six 
calendar  months  from  the  date  thereof. 

9.  And  be  it  enacted,  That  the  commissioners  aforesaid,  or  some  two 
of  them,  shall  direct  an  entry  to  be  made  in  the  said  record  book  of 
every  allotment  and  assignment  to  the  respective  proprietors  in  pur- 
suance of  this  act. 

10.  And  for  the  encouragement  of  master  builders  to  undertake  the 
building  and  finishing  houses  within  the  said  city  by  securing  to  them 
a  just  and  effectual  remedy  for  their  advances  and  earnings,  Be  it 
enacted,  That  for  all  sums  due  and  owing  on  written  contracts  for  the 
building  any  house  in  the  said  city,  or  the  brickwork  or  carpenters'  or 
joiners'  work  thereon,  the  undertaker  or  workmen  employed  by  the 
person  for  whose  use  the  house  shall  be  built  shall  have  a  lien  on  the 
house  and  the  ground  on  which  the  same  is  erected,  as  well  as  for 
the  materials  found  by  him:  Provided,  The  said  written  contract  shall 
have  been  acknowledged  before  one  of  the  commissioners,  a  justice  of 
the  peace,  or  an  alderman  of  the  corporation  of  Georgetown  and 
recorded  in  the  office  of  the  clerk  for  recording  deeds,  herein  created, 
within  six  calendar  months  from  the  time  of  acknowledgment  as  afore- 
said, and  if  within  two  years  after  the  last  of  the  work  is  done  he  pro- 
ceeds in  equity  he  shall  have  as  upon  a  mortgage,  or  if  he  proceeds  at 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  101 

law  within  the  same  time  he  may  have  execution  against  the  house  and 
land,  in  whose  hands  soever  the  same  may  be;  but  this  remedy  shall 
be  considered  as  additional  only,  nor  shall,  as  to  the  land,  take  place 
of  any  legal  incumbrance  made  prior  to  the  commencement  of  such 
claim. 

11.  And  be  it  enacted,  That  the  treasurer  of  the  western  shore  be 
empowered   and    required   to  pay  the  seventy-two  thousand  dollars 
agreed  to  be  advanced  to  the  President  by  resolutions  of  the  last  ses- 
sions of  assembly,  in  sums  as  the  same  may  come  to  his  hands  on  the 
appointed  funds,  without  waiting  for  the  day  appointed  for  the  pay- 
ment thereof. 

12.  And  be  it  enacted,  That  the  Commissioners  aforesaid  for  the  time 
being,  or  any  two  of  them,  shall  from  time  to  time,  until  Congress 
shall  exercise  the  jurisdiction  and  government  within  the  said  Terri- 
tory, have  power  to  license  the  building  of  wharves  in  the  waters  of 
the  Potomac  and   the  Eastern  Branch,  adjoining  the  said  city,  of  the 
materials,  in  the  manner  and  of  the  extent  they  may  judge  durable, 
convenient,  and  agreeing  with  the  general  order;  but  no  license  shall 
be  granted  to  one  to  build  a  wharf  before  the  land  of  another,  nor 
shall  any  wharf  be  built  in  the  waters  without  license  as  aforesaid; 
and  if  any  wharf  shall  be  built  without  such  license,  or  different  there- 
from, the  same  is  hereby  declared  a  common  nuisance.     They  may 
also,  from  time  to  time,  make  regulations  for  the  discharge  and  laying 
of  ballast  from  ships  or  vessels  lying  in  the  Potomac  River  above  the 
lower  line  of  the  said  Territory  and  Georgetown,  and  from  ships  and 
vessels  lying  in  the  Eastern  Branch.     They  may  also,  from  time  to 
time,  make  regulations  for  landing  and  laying  materials  for  building 
the  said  city,  for  disposing  and  laying  earth  which  may  be  dug  out  of 
the  wells,  cellars,  and  foundations  and  for  ascertaining  the  thickness 
of  the  walls  of  houses,  and  to  enforce  the  observance  of  all  such  regu- 
lations by  appointing  penalties  for  the  breach  of  any  one  of  them  not 
exceeding  ten  pounds  current  money,  which  may  be  recovered  in  the 
name  of  the  said  Commissioners,  by  warrant,  before  a  justice  of  the 
peace,  as  in  case  of  small  debts,  and  disposed  of  as  a  donation  for 
the  purpose  of  the  said  act  of  Congress.     And  the  said  Commissioners, 
or  any  two  of  them,  may  grant  licenses  for  retailing  distilled  spirits 
within  the  limits  of  the  said  city,  and  suspend  or  declare  the  same 
void.     And  if  any  person  shall  retail  or  sell  any  distilled  spirits,  mixed 
or  unmixed,  in  less  than  ten  gallons  to  the  same  person,  or  at  the  same 
time  actually  delivered,  he  or  she  shall  forfeit  for  every  such  sale  three 
pounds,  to  be  recovered  and  applied  as  aforesaid. 

13.  And  be  it  enacted,  That  an  act  of  assembly  of  this  State  to  con- 
demn lands,  if  necessary,  for  the  public  buildings  of  the  United  States 
be,  and  is  hereby,  repealed. 


102  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT   OF    COLUMBIA. 

APPENDIX  14. 

AN  ACT  Appointing  the  time  and  directing  the  place  of  the  next  meeting  of  Congress. 

Be  it  enacted  Ity  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  session  of 
Congress  next  ensuing  the  present  shall  be  held  at  the  city  of  Wash- 
ington, in  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  said  session  shall  commence 
on  the  third  Monday  of  November,  one  thousand  eight  hundred. 

Approved,  May  13,  1800.     (2  Stats.,  85.) 


APPENDIX  15. 
JURISDICTION  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES. 

In  the  case  of  United  States  v.  John  Hammond  (Cranch's  Circuit 
Reports,  vol.  1,  pp.  15-21)  the  court  held  "that  before  the  right  of 
exclusive  jurisdiction  absolutely  vested  in  the  United  States,  it  was 
necessary,  by  the  act  of  cession  (of  Virginia),  and  by  the  eighth 
section  of  the  first  article  of  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States,  that 
three  events  only  should  happen:  First,  that  the  cession  should  be 
accepted  by  Congress;  second,  that  it  should  be  located  and  defined; 
and  third,  that  the  district  so  accepted,  located,  and  defined  should 
become  the  seat  of  government  of  the  United  States. 

"All  these  events  had  happened  on  the  first  Monday  of  December, 
1800,  being  the  day  appointed  by  law  for  the  removal  of  the  seat  of 
government.  On  that  day,  therefore,  all  the  preliminary  events  hav- 
ing happened,  the  District  of  Columbia  became  vested  in  the  Congress 
and  Government  of  the  United  States,  according  to  the  impressive 
words  of  the  act  of  cession  'in  full  and  absolute  right  and  exclusive 
jurisdiction  as  well  of  soil  as  of  persons  residing  or  to  reside  thereon.*" 


APPENDIX  16. 

[House  Report  No.  325,  Twenty-ninth  Congress,  first  session.] 

RETROCESSION   OF   ALEXANDRIA    TO   VIRGINIA. 

[To  accompany  H.  R.  No.  259.] 

On  February  25,  1846,  Mr.  Hunter,  from  the  Committee  for  the 
District  of  Columbia,  made  the  following  report: 

The  committee  to  whom  was  referred  the  petition  of  many  citizens 
of  the  town  and  county  of  Alexandria  for  the  retrocession  of  the  por- 
tion of  the  District  of  Columbia  south  of  the  Potomac  have  considered 
the  same,  and  report: 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  103 

That  they  have  come  to  the  conclusion  that  there  is  much  in  the 
petition  to  commend  itself  to  the  favor  of  Congress. 

The  portion  of  the  District  of  Columbia  south  of  the  Potomac  con- 
stitutes about  one-third  of  its  area,  and  up  to  this  time  has  not  been 
used  for  the  public  buildings  or  grounds  necessary  for  the  seat  of 
government. 

The  experience  of  more  than  forty  years  seems  to  have  demonstrated 
that  the  cession  of  the  county  and  town  of  Alexandria  was  unnecessary 
for  any  of  the  purposes  of  a  seat  of  government,  mischievous  to  the 
interest  of  the  District  at  large,  and  especially  injurious  to  the  people 
of  that  portion  which  was  ceded  by  Virginia.  One  of  the  great  objects 
in  removing  the  seat  of  government  to  a  district  under  the  exclusive 
legislation  of  Congress  was  to  secure  the  persons  and  deliberations  of 
the  members  of  the  General  Government  from  open  violence  or  lawless 
intrusions. 

Your  committee  can  see  no  reason  why  this  object  may  not  be  as 
well  secured  by  confining  the  District  to  two-thirds  of  its  present 
extent  as  by  embracing  the  whole  within  its  area.  Within  the  por- 
tion of  the  District  on  the  north  side  of  the  Potomac  River  there  is 
much  more  than  space  enough  for  all  the  public  grounds  and  buildings 
ever  likely  to  be  necessary  for  the  seat  of  government.  Beyond  this 
quantity  every  addition  of  territory  to  be  embraced  within  the  exclu- 
sive legislation  of  Congress  is  not  only  unnecessary  but  makes  a  use- 
less diversion  of  its  time  and  attention  from  the  great  objects  of 
general  legislation  to  the  discharge  of  the  duties  of  a  petty  local  legis- 
lation, for  which  it  is  unfitted.  In  the  District  itself  this  union  of  the 
counties  of  Washington  and  Alexandria  has  been  the  source  of  much 
mischief. 

At  the  time  of  the  cession  of  this  District,  the  counties  of  Washing- 
ton and  Alexandria  were  left  under  the  operation  of  the  laws  of  the 
States  of  Maryland  and  Virginia,  respectively,  except  so  far  as  they 
might  be  altered  by  the  subsequent  legislation  of  Congress.  Within 
the  limits  of  the  ten  miles  square  we  have  thus  had  two  people  sepa- 
rated by  a  broad  river,  and  under  the  operation  of  different  codes  of 
laws.  It  has  been  so  difficult  to  harmonize  the  legislation  of  Congress 
with  these  two  different  codes,  and  that  body  has  had  so  little  time  to 
bestow  on  this  work,  that  but  little  has  been  done  toward  amending 
their  codes,  or  toward  placing  the  District  under  one  general  system 
of  laws.  The  difficulty  of  harmonizing  its  legislation  with  both  codes 
has  hitherto  prevented  Congress  from  making  many  most  necessary 
alterations  in  either.  It  is  not  to  be  conceded  that  these  and  other  cir- 
cumstances have  always  produced  a  degree  of  sectional  feeling,  even 
in  this  small  District,  which  would  scarcely  have  been  expected  by 
those  who  had  not  examined  into  the  causes  of  their  dissensions.  It 
would  be  possible,  perhaps,  with  much  more  time  and  labor  than  Con- 
gress will  ever  have  to  bestow  on  this  subject  to  substitute  a  general 


104  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

code  for  the  different  systems  of  law,  but  the  difficulties  in  the  way  of 
this  work  would  be  far  greater  than  would  attend  the  amendment  of 
either  one  of  the  systems  considered  separately.  Nor  is  it  likely  that 
Congress  will  ever  have  the  time  to  bestow  on  work  of  so  much  labor. 

But  if  this  were  accomplished,  there  is  a  still  more  permanent  cause 
of  jealousy  subsisting  between  the  two  parties  of  the  District  of 
Columbia. 

All  the  disbursements  growing  out  of  the  location  of  the  seat  of 
government  are  made  within  the  countj^  of  Washington,  and  of  neces- 
sity must  continue  to  be  so  made. 

This  has  been  and  will  continue  to  be  a  source  of  jealousy  and  divi- 
sion between  the  counties  of  the  District.  Had  the  District  submitted 
to  the  exclusive  legislation  of  Congress,  been  confined  to  either  county, 
it  is  probable  that  Congress  would  have  been  able  to  have  discharged 
to  a  far  greater  extent  the  duties  of  a  local  legislature,  and  with  a  far 
less  expenditure  of  time  and  money  than  has  been  wasted  on  the  hith- 
erto vain  attempt  to  attain  that  object.  The  present  condition  of  the 
laws  in  the  District  of  Columbia  is  such  as  should  excite  a  strong  sym- 
pathy for  its  people,  and  would  reflect  some  discredit  on  our  legisla- 
tion if  it  were  not  obvious  that  the  difference  in  the  systems  and  the 
local  jealousies  of  the  two  counties  have  interposed  difficulties  which 
it  required  more  time  to  surmount  than  Congress  have  ever  had  to 
bestow  upon  the  subject.  The  people  of  the  county  and  town  of  Alex- 
andria have  been  subjected  not  only  to  their  full  share  of  those  evils 
which  affect  the  District  generally,  but  they  have  enjoyed  none  of 
these  benefits  which  serve  to  mitigate  their  disadvantages  in  the  county 
of  Washington.  The  advantages  which  flow  from  the  location  of  the 
seat  of  government  are  almost  entirely  confined  to  the  latter  county, 
whose  people,  as  far  as  your  committee  are  advised,  are  entirely  con- 
tent to  remain  under  the  exclusive  legislation  of  Congress. 

But  the  people  of  the  county  and  town  of  Alexandria,  who  enjoy 
few  of  those  advantages,  are,  as  your  committee  believe,  justly  impa- 
tient of  a  state  of  things  which  subjects  them  not  only  to  all  the  evils 
of  inefficient  legislation,  but  also  to  political  disfranchisement.  To 
enlarge  on  the  immense  value  of  the  elective  franchise  would  be 
unnecessary  before  an  American  Congress  or  in  the  present  state  of 
public  opinion.  The  condition  of  thousands  of  our  fellow-citizens 
who,  without  any  equivalent,  if  equivalent  there  could  be,  are  thus 
denied  a  vote  in  the  local  or  general  legislation  by  which  they  are 
governed,  who  to  a  great  extent  are  under  the  operation  of  old  English 
and  Virginia  statutes  long  since  repealed  in  the  counties  where  they 
originated,  and  whose  sons  are  cut  off  from  many  of  the  most  highly 
valued  privileges  of  life,  except  upon  the  condition  of  leaving  the  soil 
of  their  birth,  is  such  as  must  deeply  move  the  sympathies  of  those 
who  enjoy  those  rights  themselves  and  regard  them  as  inestimable. 
Your  committee  believe  that  it  would  be  difficult  to  measure  the  full 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  105 

extent  of  the  depressing  effect  which  these  circumstances  have  had 
upon  the  growth  and  prosperity  of  the  people  of  the  town  and  county 
of  Alexandria.  When  we  compare  their  present  condition  with  that 
which  their  natural  advantages  would  seem  to  have  promised,  we  are 
constrained  to  believe  that  there  is  something  in  their  political  state 
which  must  have  marred  the  beneficent  design  of  nature. 

Upon  a  full  view  of  all  these  considerations,  your  committee  are  of 
opinion  that  the  interest  of  the  General  Government,  of  the  whole 
District  of  Columbia,  and  particularly  of  the  people  of  the  county 
and  town  of  Alexandria,  would  be  promoted  by  a  retrocession  of  that 
county  to  the  State  of  Virginia,  whose  general  assembly  have  signified 
their  assent  to  the  act  by  a  law  passed  with  the  unanimous  vote  of 
both  houses. 

It  has  been  alleged,  it  is  true,  that  Congress  has  no  power  to  pass 
such  an  act — upon  the  grounds  which  your  committee  have  examined, 
and  believe  to  be  entirely  insufficient.  This  objection  rests  mainly 
upon  the  assumption  that  the  power  in  relation  to  the  location  of  the 
seat  of  government,  and  the  extent  of  the  district  given  in  the  seven- 
teenth clause  of  the  eighth  section  and  first  article  of  the  Constitution, 
has  been  executed  and  exhausted — a  construction  not  warranted,  as  we 
believe,  by  the  history  or  context  of  the  clause  in  question,  nor  by  the 
general  spirit  of  the  instrument  in  which  it  is  contained.  There  is  no 
more  reason  to  believe  that  the  power  in  this  case,  when  once  exer- 
cised and  executed,  is  exhausted  than  in  any  other  of  the  long  list  of 
enumerated  powers  to  which  it  belongs,  and  which  it  is  provided  that 
Congress  "shall  have." 

The  phraseology  of  the  grant  is  the  same,  and  as  much  reason  seems 
to  exist  for  the  continuance  of  the  right  to  exercise  this  power  as  in 
most  of  those  contained  in  the  list  to  which  we  have  referred.  If  this 
construction  be  true,  when  Congress  had  once  fixed  the  seat  of  gov- 
ernment it  could  no  more  be  removed;  although  it  should  prove  to  be 
unsafe  from  foreign  invasion  or  so  unhealthy  as  to  endanger  the  lives 
of  the  members  of  the  Government,  or  so  located  as  to  be  inconsist- 
ent with  a  due  regard  to  the  facilities  of  access  to  our  whole  popula- 
tion or  to  their  convenience;  and  yet  it  is  manifest  that  some  of  these 
considerations  might  make  the  removal  of  the  seat  of  government  a 
matter  of  necessity.  To  have  excluded  the  conclusion  that  the  f  ramers 
of  the  Constitution  had  regarded  considerations  so  manifest  and  rea- 
sonable, there  must  have  been  terms  so  precise  and  accurate  as  to  have 
left  no  doubt  of  their  intention  to  make  the  act  irrevocable  when  the 
power  was  once  exercised.  As  some  proof  that  the  framers  of  the 
Constitution  did  not  overlook  these  considerations,  we  may  advert  to 
the  fact  that  Mr.  Madison  moved  to  strike  out  the  word  "permanent" 
from  the  act  establishing  the  seat  of  government  because  the  Consti- 
tution did  not  contain  it.  Nor  is  this  the  only  difficulty  involved  by 
this  construction ;  the  same  section  gives  a  like  power  relative  to  forts 


106  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

and  arsenals.  And,  contrary  to  reason  and  the  usage  of  Congress, 
this  power  when  once  exercised  would  be  thus  considered  as  executed 
and  exhausted. 

The  true  construction  of  this  clause  of  the  Constitution  would  seem 
to  be  that  Congress  may  retain  and  exercise  exclusive  jurisdiction 
over  a  district  not  exceeding  10  miles  square;  and  whether  those 
limits  may  enlarge  or  diminish  that  district,  or  change  the  site,  upon 
considerations  relating  to  the  seat  of  government,  and  connected  with 
the  wants  for  that  purpose;  the  limitation  upon  their  power  in  this 
respect  is  that  they  shall  not  hold  more  than  10  miles  square  for  this 
purpose;  and  the  end  is  to  attain  what  is  desirable  in  relation  to  the 
seat  of  government.  This  construction  is  consistent  with  the  phrase- 
ology of  the  Constitution,  with  the  reasons  for  granting  such  a  power, 
and  not  inconsistent  with  the  reserved  powers  of  the  States.  It  saves 
the  Government,  too,  from  great  and  manifold  inconveniences  to 
which  it  would  be  exposed  upon  any  other  interpretation  of  the  clause 
in  question.  Congress  might,  under  this  clause,  have  taken  a  district 
less  than  10  miles  square;  and  if  this  had  been  found  insufficient,  there 
can  be  no  doubt  but  that  it  might  have  added  as  much  more  by  cession 
from  a  State  as  was  necessary  for  the  purposes  of  a  seat  of  govern- 
ment. If  it  had  taken  more  originally  than  was  necessary  for  those 
purposes,  there  would  seem  to  be  as  little  doubt  but  that  they  might 
relinquish  the  surplus.  If  it  may  remove  the  site  of  its  exclusive 
legislation  from  the  Potomac  to  the  Mississippi  it  would  seem  to  be 
clear  that  they  might  remove  that  site  from  the  boundaries  of  Alex- 
andria County  to  the  north  bank  of  the  Potomac. 

But,  it  has  been  asked,  by  what  clause  of  the  Constitution  could 
Congress  transfer  the  district  thus  abandoned  to  the  legislation  of  any 
State;  and  if  there  be  none,  is  it  not  a  fatal  objection  to  the  construc- 
tion given  by  us  to  the  clause  in  dispute — that  the  people  of  the 
district  thus  relinquished  would  be  left  without  any  government 
whatever?  Different  minds  attending  to  the  system  of  constitutional 
construction  to  which  they  inclined  have  derived  this  power  from 
different  clauses  of  the  Constitution.  Some  think  that  the  power  of 
the  General  Government  to  cede  in  such  a  case  is  to  be  derived  from 
the  power  of  "exclusive  legislation"  given  by  the  Constitution. 
Some,  too,  derive  this  power  from  that  "to  dispose  of,  and  make  all 
needful  rules  and  regulations  respecting  the  territory  or  other  prop- 
erty belonging  to  the  United  States."  Others,  again,  hold  that  the 
right  to  exercise  exclusive  legislation  in  this  case  is  a  qualified  right, 
and  determines  when  the  seat  of  government  is  removed.  Those  who 
hold  this  opinion  maintain  that  when  this  right  determines,  the  jurisdic- 
tion reverts  to  the  ceding  State,  who,  by  the  very  terms  of  the  Consti- 
tution, could  only  have  ceded  the  right  of  exclusive  legislation  to  the 
District  while  it  remained  the  seat  of  government.  Your  committee 


GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  107 

think  there  is  much  of  truth  in  this  last  opinion.  Fcr  it  is  only  by 
this  construction  that  the  seat  of  government  can  be  removed  by  the 
Federal  authorities,  without  not  only  the  assent  of  the  States  who  cede 
the  new  site,  but  also  of  those  who  have  given  the  old.  This  would 
enable  either  the  State  of  Maryland  or  Virginia  to  prevent  the  removal 
of  the  seat  of  government,  although  demanded  by  ever}'  other  State 
in  the  Union.  For  even  those  who  derive  the  power  from  the  two 
sources  first  named  could  not  maintain  that  consistently  with  good 
faith;  we  could  cede  away  to  other  States  territory  not  contiguous  to 
them,  but  contiguous  to  Virginia  and  Maryland,  and  ceded  by  them 
for  a  consideration,  which  failed  the  moment  that  the  seat  of  govern- 
ment was  removed. 

Upon  the  last  construction  as  to  the  relative  rights  of  the  parties 
no  such  inconvenience  could  be  experienced.  We  might  remove  the 
seat  of  government  without  the  consent  of  Virginia  and  Maryland,  if 
a  majority  of  the  people  and  States  desired  it,  without  leaving  the 
abandoned  District  beyond  the  pale  of  all  government,  and  without 
violating  the  provision  of  the  Constitution  which  limits  the  right  of 
Congress  to  exclusive  legislation  to  10  miles  square.  Under  this  view 
of  the  clause  in  question,  the  jurisdiction  over  the  county  of  Alexan- 
dria would  revert  to  Virginia  upon  the  withdrawal  of  the  right  of 
exclusive  legislation  over  it,  by  confining  the  seat  of  government  to 
the  portion  of  the  district  north  of  the  Potomac  River.  But,  in  any 
view  of  the  case,  an  act  of  retrocession  would  be  proper,  as  it  would 
be  conferring  a  right  on  Virginia  which  would  be  necessary  in  the 
opinion  of  some,  or  else  acknowledging  a  right  already  existing,  after 
the  withdrawal  of  our  jurisdiction,  in  the  opinion  of  others.  The 
grant  would  be  necessary  according  to  the  one  opinion,  and  the 
acknowledgment  of  right  would  be  salutary  even  upon  the  grounds 
assumed  by  others.  One  other  objection  to  the  act  of  retrocession 
remains  to  be  considered.  The  act  of  Congress  establishing  the  pres- 
ent seat  of  government  characterized  it  as  permanent.  It  has  been 
maintained  that  its  site  could  not  be  removed  or  changed  without  the 
assent  of  both  Virginia  and  Maryland,  except  by  a  breach  of  faith 
toward  these  States.  It  might  be  replied  that  this  word  "permanent" 
meant  only  an  indefinite  period;  that  it  was  designed  merely  to  require 
the  removal  to  be  made  by  law,  and  not  by  resolution  of  the  two 
Houses;  or  it  might  be  well  said  that  Congress  could  not,  by  contract, 
part  with  a  power  reposed  in  them  by  the  Constitution  for  wise  pur- 
poses; but  in  point  of  fact,  the  history  of  the  transaction  does  not  sus- 
tain this  view  of  the  contract. 

Neither  Virginia  nor  Maryland,  by  their  acts  of  cession,  made  the 
permanence  of  the  seat  of  government  a  condition  of  the  grant. 
Nor  is  there  anything  in  the  acts  of  cession  or  the  circumstances 
attending  them  to  sanction  the  idea  which  has  been  expressed,  that  it 


108  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

was  a  contract  between  the  United  States  and  the  States  of  Virginir 
and  Maryland  jointly,  and  thus  that  good  faith  would  require  the 
assent  of  both  States  to  a  retrocession  to  either.  A  reference  to  these 
acts  will  show  that  each  State  contracted,  for  itself  only,  with  the  Gen- 
eral Government,  and  did  not  contemplate  the  action  of  any  other 
State  as  necessarily  connected  with  its  own.  This  is  conclusively 
proved  by  the  fact  that  each  State  offered  to  cede  the  whole  of  the  10 
miles  square,  and  thus  clearly  contemplated  the  case  in  which  the 
United  States  and  itself  might  be  the  only  parties  to  the  contract. 
The  acts  of  Virginia  and  Maryland  were  passed  at  different  times  and 
without  the  least  reference  to  each  other.  Upon  all  these  views  as  to 
the  propriety  and  right  of  retroceding  to  Virginia  all  that  portion  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  originally  ceded  by  her  to  the  United  States, 
your  committee  have  been  induced  to  report  a  bill,  which  is  respect- 
fully submitted. 

MEMORIAL,    OF    THE     COMMITTEE     OF    THE    TOWN    OF   ALEXANDRIA    FOR 

RETROCESSION. 

The  committee  appointed  by  the  common  council  of  Alexandria  to 
attend  to  the  interests  of  the  town  before  Congress,  and  especially  to 
urge  upon  that  body  the  subject  of  retrocession,  beg  leave  respectfully 
to  submit  to  the  honorable  chairman  and  members  of  the  District 
Committee  of  the  House  of  Representatives  some  of  the  considerations 
which  impel  them  greatly  to  desire  to  return  to  the  State  of  Virginia, 
from  which,  in  an  evil  hour,  they  were  separated.  We  maintain  that 
all  government  (politically  considered)  but  self-government  is  bad,  and 
that  without  some  radical  change,  time,  instead  of  making  a  bad  gov- 
ernment better,  will  make  it  worse;  that  whatever  power  is  exercised 
independently  of  the  will  of  the  people,  expressed  individually  or 
through  their  representatives,  is  a  despotism.  When  we  remind  the 
committee  that  we  are  a  disfranchised  people,  deprived  of  all  those 
political  rights  and  privileges  so  dear  to  an  American  citizen,  and  the 
possession  of  which  is  so  well  calculated  to  elevate  and  dignify  the 
human  character;  that  the  exclusive  jurisdiction  which  Congress  pos- 
sesses over  us,  however  wisely  and  moderately  exercised,  is  a  despot- 
ism, we  are  almost  inclined  to  sa}^  nothing  more,  as  we  can  not  doubt 
but  that  our  feelings,  under  such  circumstances,  will  meet  with  the 
ready  sympathy  of  every  member  of  Congress.  Regardless  of  these 
evils  we  should  be  willing  to  continue  in  this  state  of  vassalage,  and 
sacrifice  ourselves  for  the  good  of  our  country,  could  we  perceive  any 
substantial  benefit  resulting  therefrom  to  the  rest  of  the  Union. 

The  citizens  of  Alexandria  are  as  strongly  influenced  as  the  citizens 
of  any  of  the  States  (we  say  not  fellow-citizens,  for  in  our  degraded 
condition  the  term  would  be  inapplicable)  by  emotions  of  pure  and 
elevated  patriotism.  We  are  convinced,  however,  that  so  far  from 


GOVERNMENT    OB"    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  109 

being  of  advantage  we  are  a  useless  and  even  a  burdensome  appendage 
to  the  General  Government.  The  appropriations  for  the  support  of 
the  judicial  system  of  the  District  of  Columbia  have  been  a  subject  of 
serious  complaint,  amounting,  we  believe,  to  as  much  as  $50,000  per 
annum.  By  retroceding  the  town  and  county  of  Alexandria  this 
amount  would  be  greatly  diminished,  and  there  would  be  a  consider- 
able saving  in  the  diminished  time  that  Congress  would  feei  it  incum- 
bent on  them  to  bestow  on  the  affairs  of  the  District.  Our  condition 
is  essentially  different  from  and  far  worse  than  that  of  our  neighbors 
on  the  northern  side  of  the  Potomac.  They  are  citizens  of  the  metrop- 
olis of  a  great  and  noble  republic,  and  wherever  they  go  there  cluster 
about  them  all  those  glorious  associations  connected  with  the  progress 
and  fame  of  their  country.  They  are  in  some  measure  compensated 
for  the  loss  of  their  political  rights  by  benefits  resulting  from  the  large 
expenditure  of  public  money  among  them,  and  by  daily  intercourse 
and  association  with  the  various  officers  of  the  Government,  and  par- 
ticularly with  the  members  of  Congress.  How  is  it  with  the  citizens 
of  Alexandria?  When  they  go  abroad,  or  their  sons  are  sent  to  the 
various  literary  institutions  in  the  States,  from  a  sense  of  their  degraded 
political  condition  they  are  induced  to  pass  themselves  as  citizens  of 
Virginia. 

Permit  us  here  expressly  to  state  that  in  nothing  we  have  said  or 
may  say  do  we  design  to  cast  any  censure  on  Congress.  Their  good 
will  we  do  not  for  a  moment  doubt,  but  are  confident  that  the  evils 
under  which  we  labor  can  not  be  remedied  otherwise  than  by  retro- 
cession. While  eveiy  State  in  the  Union  has  been  amending  and 
improving  its  civil  and  penal  codes,  and  none  more  so  than  Virginia, 
but  few  changes,  and  still  fewer  improvements,  have  been  made  in  our 
laws.  The  laws  of  Virginia,  as  they  existed  on  the  27th  of  Februaiy, 
J801,  with  some  few  unimportant  changes,  are  still  in  force  with  us. 
We  are  yet  governed  by  antiquated  English  statutes,  repealed  even 
there  half  a  century  ago.  Efforts  have,  at  different  periods  since  the 
cession  of  the  District,  been  made  by  Congress  to  establish  for  us  a 
code  of  laws,  but  each  effort  has  proven  abortive,  and  we  doubt  not  that 
future  efforts  will,  if  made,  share  a  similar  fate.  With  a  due  regard 
to  the  interests  of  the  constituents  of  each  member  of  your  honorable 
body,  it  is  not  reasonable  to  expect  Congress  to  give  the  time  neces- 
sary to  modify  and  reform  these  laws  in  such  a  manner  as  is  necessary. 
So  mongrel  and  complicated  is  our  present  system,  so  patchwork  in 
its  nature,  that  to  ascertain  what  the  law  is  we  are  in  many  cases 
compelled  to  resort  to  the  revised  code  of  Virginia  of  the  last  century 
(now  nearly  out  of  print),  to  the  laws  of  Maiyland,  and  acts  of  Con- 
gress, and  when  we  have  undergone  this  labor  find  it  difficult  to  evis- 
cerate from  the  chaotic  mass  the  true  meaning  of  the  law.  Can  a  peo- 
ple among  whom  the  march  of  the  human  mmd  is  thus  impeded  in 


110  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

relation  to  the  highest  object?  on  which  it  can  be  exercised,  be  expected 
to  prosper — when,  too,  we  are  surrounded  by  States  to  whose  citizens 
every  passing  year  brings  the  fruits  of  an  improved  judgment  and  a 
more  intelligent  understanding? 

By  decisions  of  the  Supreme  Court,  the  inhabitants  of  this  District 
are  not  constitutionally  entitled  to  many  of  the  civil  rights  of  citizens 
of  the  States,  as  guaranteed  to  them  merely  because  their  rights  are 
secured  to  them  as  being  citizens  of  a  Slate;  and  while  an  alien,  a 
British  subject,  may  sue  in  the  Federal  courts  of  the  Union,  we  are 
denied  the  privilege.  In  order  to  obtain  this  right,  individual  instances 
have  occurred  in  which  our  citizens  have  been  compelled  to  remove  to 
one  of  the  States.  We  are  deprived  of  the  elective  franchise,  a  privi- 
lege so  dear  and  sacred  that  we  would  present  its  deprivation  in  the 
strongest  light  before  your  honorable  body.  Side  by  side  with  the 
trial  by  jury  and  the  writ  of  habeas  corpus  may  be  placed  the  rights 
of  the  ballot  box.  It  is  not  unworthy  of  the  remark  that  while  the 
principles  of  free  government  are  yearly  extending  with  the  rapid 
march  of  civilization,  and  thrones  and  dynasties  are  yielding  to  their 
influence,  here  alone  in  the  10  miles  square  in  and  about  the  capital  of 
this  great  country  is  there  no  improvement,  no  advance  in  popular 
rights.  A  foreigner,  on  reaching  some  distant  portion  of  our  terri- 
tory, might  well  expect  on  approaching  the  seat  of  government  to  find 
its  inhabitants  enjoying  in  at  least  an  equal  degree  the  free  institutions 
of  the  country.  In  ascertaining  our  true  condition,  how  unaccountable 
must  it  appear  that  we  alone  are  denied  them. 

However  clear  ourselves  as  to  the  constitutional  right  of  Congress 
to  carry  out  the  measure  we  propose,  as  some  doubts — not,  we  think, 
of  a  serious  character — have  been  suggested,  it  is  perhaps  proper  that 
we  should  advert  to  the  subject.  By  the  seventeenth  section  of  the 
eighth  article  of  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States,  the .  power  is 
delegated  to  Congress  to  exercise  exclusive  jurisdiction  in  all  cases 
whatsoever  over  such  district  (not  exceeding  10  miles  square)  as  might, 
by  the  cession  of  particular  States  and  the  acceptance  of  Congress, 
become  the  seat  of  government.  In  limiting  the  extent  of  territory 
thus  to  be  ceded  to  10  miles  square,  it  is  evident  that  Congress  was  not 
tied  down  to  that  particular  quantity  nor  prohibited  from  accepting 
any  less  quantity;  and  had  it  thus  acted,  the  requirements  of  the  Con- 
stitution would  have  been  fully  answered.  The  avowed  object  of  the 
framers  of  the  Constitution,  in  giving  Congress  exclusive  jurisdiction 
over  a  space  of  country  surrounding  the  seat  of  government,  was  to 
protect  its  deliberations  from  disturbance  and  to  secure  its  action  from 
the  influence  of  popular  outbreaks.  It  was  left,-  however,  for  Con- 
gress to  determine  the  extent  of  territory,  not  exceeding  or  within  the 
limits  of  10  miles  square,  over  which  it  might  be  proper  to  exercise 
exclusive  legislation.  For  causes  satisfactory  to  Congress,  they  thought 


GOVEKNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  Ill 

proper  to  accept  the  maximum  quantity  allowed  by  the  Constitution; 
and  the  question  now  is,  whether  they  have  not  the  clear  and  undoubted 
right  of  withdrawing  their  jurisdiction  from  so  much  thereof  as  to 
them  may  appear  unnecessary  and  useless  for  the  purposes  of  the  origi- 
nal cession.  The  right  to  abandon  would  seem  necessarily  to  follow 
the  right  to  acquire. 

Virginia,  in  her  act  of  cession,  passed  to  the  General  Government 
the  exclusive  jurisdiction  alone  of  that  part  of  the  District  of  Columbia 
south  of  the  river  Potomac.  The  right  of  property  in  the  soil  is 
expressly  reserved  to  the  individual  proprietors.  Has  this  jurisdiction 
become  so  vested  that  it  can  not  be  divested,  even  by  the  consent  of  the 
contracting  parties,  without  an  amendment  of  the  Constitution  ?  Were 
this  true  it  would,  when  carried  out,  establish  that  when  Congress 
shall  have  once,  undertaken  to  exercise  any  of  the  other  delegated 
powers,  the  right  again  to  exercise  such  power  would  be  forever  extin- 
guished. Although  the  jurisdiction  over  the  Territory  of  Columbia 
was  ceded  jointly  by  the  States  of  Maryland  and  Virginia,  yet  the 
assent  of  the  former  can  surely  not  be  necessary  to  authorize  the  Gen- 
eral Government  to  recede  to  the  State  of  Virginia  the  jurisdiction 
over  that  part  of  the  territory  originally  ceded  by  that  State. 

In  parting  with  the  jurisdiction  over  the  town  and  county  of  Alex- 
andria, Virginia  appended  no  condition  or  limitation  in  her  act  of 
cession  other  than  the  protection  of  the  individual  rights  of  the  inhab- 
itants. The  only  implied  restriction  to  the  control  of  Congress  in 
relinquishing  such  jurisdiction  would  be,  that  the  object  of  the  original 
grant  should  not  be  thereby  defeated.  In  this  view  the  question 
becomes  one  of  mere  expediency  for  Congress  to  determine  whether 
the  other  portion  of  Columbia  (to  some  of  which  the  United  States 
have  the  absolute  right  in  the  soil)  would  not  be  amply  sufficient  for 
all  the  purposes  of  a  seat  of  government.  The  absolute  power  of 
Congress  to  dispose  of  the  public  lands  can  not  be  doubted.  An 
express  authority  for  this  may  be  found  in  the  second  section  of  the 
third  article  of  the  amended  Constitution.  It  provides  that — 

Congress  shall  have  power  to  dispose  of,  and  make  all  needful  rules  and  regulations 
respecting,  the  territory  or  other  property  of  the  United  States. 

From  the  latter  part  of  the  seventeenth  section,  above  referred  to, 
it  is  evident  that  the  power  secured  to  Congress,  by  giving  it  exclusive 
legislation  over  the  District  of  Columbia,  is  exactly  the  same  and 
none  other  than  it  is  authorized  to  exercise  over  any  other  property 
of  the  United  States;  and  that  land  granted  for  the  erection  of  forts, 
for  arsenals,  and  other  purposes  is  not  more  liable  to  its  control  than 
the  territory,  or  jurisdiction  over  the  territory,  of  Columbia. 

If  the  title  to  property  be  absolute  the  mode  of  its  acquisition 
is  unimportant.  Whether  it  be  by  gift,  purchase,  or  conquest,  it  is 
still  but  a  complete  title.  Congress,  by  a  long  and  uniform  series  of 
74986—09 8 


112  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

legislation,  has  given  a  practical  construction  to  that  part  of  the  Con- 
stitution by  which  it  is  authorized  to  dispose  of  the  public  property. 
Lands  owned  by  the  United  States  have,  regardless  of  the  mere  man- 
ner of  acquisition,  been  placed  under  the  exclusive  legislation  of 
Congress,  and  appropriated  for  the  erection  of  forts,  arsenals,  and  for 
other  public  uses.  When  they  ceased  to  be  necessary  or  useful  to  the 
Government  for  the  objects  of  the  original  appropriation  they  have 
been  sold  and  disposed  of  according  to  the  will  of  Congress.  The 
entire  power  of  the  General  Government  over  the  immense  body  of 
public  domain  acquired  by  the  cession  of  Florida  and  Louisiana  has 
never  been  doubted,  and  that  obtained  by  the  recent  annexation  of 
Texas  must  occupy  a  similar  footing.  In  the  exercise  of  this  power 
private  rights  are  of  course  respected. 

If,  then,  Congress  has  the  power  of  disposing  of  territory  ceded  by 
a  foreign  government,  can  it  not  relinquish  a  jurisdiction  acquired 
from  one  of  the  sovereign  States  of  this  Union?  An  abandonment  of 
the  right  of  exclusive  legislation  by  Congress  has  been  exhibited,  as 
the  new  States  formed  out  of  parts  of  the  Northwest  Territory  (also 
ceded  by  Virginia)  have  one  by  one  entered  the  confederacy.  If  the 
Government  can  not  withdraw,  or  agree  not  to  exercise,  the  right  of 
exclusive  legislation  over  a  territory  because  such  right  has  become 
vested  and  has  for  a  time  been  legally  exercised,  it  might  place  it 
beyond  the  reach  of  Congress,  under  whatever  emergency,  to  estab- 
lish boundaries  between  our  territory  and  that  of  other  nations 
having  contiguous  possessions.  The  recent  location  of  the  north- 
eastern boundary  by  the  Ashburton  treaty,  with  others  of  a  similar 
nature,  shows  that  Congress  may,  by  treaty,  waive  and  forever  aban- 
don the  right  of  exclusive  legislation,  though  previously  possessed 
and  exercised. 

.  Other  instances  have  occurred  in  the  legislation  of  Congress  of  an 
actual  transfer  of  jurisdiction.  (See  vol.  1,  Laws  U.  S.,  574.)  We 
conceive  that  the  legislature  of  Virginia,  by  its  act  of  cession,  virtually 
said  to  the  United  States,  You  may  henceforward  exercise  exclusive 
legislation  over  the  town  and  county  of  Alexandria,  and  that  Congress, 
having  accepted  the  cession  and  finding  from  long  experience  that  the 
exercise  of  such  jurisdiction  was  wholly  useless  to  the  General  Govern- 
ment and  productive  of  many  evils  to  the  inhabitants,  may  well  deter- 
mine, with  the  consent  of  Virginia,  to  restore  the  power  thus  granted. 

In  view,  then,  not  only  of  a  sound  construction  of  the  Constitution, 
but  also  of  the  repeated  and  well-established  usage  of  the  Government, 
it  would  seem,  at  this  day,  to  be  far  too  late  to  raise  any  doubts  about 
the  power  of  Congress  to  recede  to  the  State  of  Virginia  the  jurisdic- 
tion over  that  portion  o;f  the  Territory  of  Columbia  which  lies  south 
of  the  river  Potomac. 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  113 

For  these  reasons,  and  believing  that  the  many  grievances  to  which 
our  people  are  subject  can  only  be  remedied  by  retroceding  to  the 
State  of  Virginia,  we  humbly  petition  the  adoption  of  the  necessary 
report  and  legislation  proper  to  effectuate  this  end. 
All  of  which  is  respectively  submitted. 

FRANCIS  L.  SMITH, 
ROBERT  BROCKETT, 
CHARLES  T.  STUART, 
Committee  of  the  Town  of  Alexandria. 


APPENDIX  17. 
ORIGIN  OF  CARROLLSBURG  AND  HAMBURG. 

1.  The  property  in  Carrollsburg  was  subdivided  into  lots,  streets, 
alleys,  etc.,  about  the  latter  part  of  1770,  by  virtue  and  authority  of 
a  deed  of  trust  dated  the  2d  day  of  November,  1770,  from  Charles 
Carroll,  jr.,  to  Henry  Rozer,  Daniel  Carroll,  and  Notley  Young  (vide 
Liber  A  A,  No.  2,  fol.  299  et  seq.).     This  conveyance  authorizes  the 
grantees  to  subdivide  "Duddington  Manor'1  and  "Duddington  Pas- 
ture," containing  in  the  aggregate  160  acres  of  land,  more  or  less,  into 
268  lots,  to  sell  the  same  (except  6  lots  to  be  selected  by  the  grantor, 
his  heirs  or  assigns,  for  his  or  their  own  proper  use),  and  to  draw  or 
cause  to  be  drawn  for  by  ballot  or  lottery.     This  deed  is  recorded  on 
November  20,  1770,  and  the  plat,  courses,  and  distances  of  the  town 
are  also  of  record  in  the  Land  and  Special  Record.     Immediately  fol- 
lowing are  innumerable  deeds  from  the  above  grantees  to  different 
parties  for  lots  in  Carrollsburg,  which  the  deeds  recite  having  been 
drawn  by  the  grantees,  respectively,  in  a  lottery  of  the  same.     It  was 
a  custom  apparently  in  those  days  to  dispose  of  property  by  lottery. 
In  my  researches  of  the  old  records  I  have  found  several  such,  includ- 
ing the  St.  Elizabeth  Asylum  of  your  city,  which  was  drawn  by  an 
old  sea  captain.     In  the  Elizabeth  matter,  as  in  this,  the  owner  con- 
veyed the  property  to  the  trustees,  who  sold  the  tickets,  attended  the 
drawing,  and  deeded  the  prize  to  the  lucky  owner.     There  is  no  men- 
tion whatever  in  an}r  of  the  conveyances  of  this  Carrollsburg  property 
of  any  contemplated  cession  to  the  United  States. 

2.  Hamburg  was  surveyed  and  laid  off  by  the  owner,  Jacob  Funk, 
and  his  plat  recorded  here  October  28,  1771,  in  Liber  A  A,  No.  2, 
folio  398.     Funk  appears  to  have  purchased  the  land  in  fee  simple 
from  Thomas  Johns  in  1765  (see  deed  in  Liber  B  B,  fol.  -227  et  seq.), 
and  to  have  taken  out  a  commission  in  1770  to  perpetuate  the  bounds 
of  widow's  mite,  and  then  to  have  laid  it  off  and  sold  it  out  as  lots  in 
Hamburg,  giving  the  deeds  to  the  purchasers  himself.     None  of  these 


114  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

deeds  recite  that  the  lots  have  been  drawn  by  lottery  or  ballot.  The 
deed  of  trust  for  Carrollsburg  is  the  only  authority  I  caa  find  for  a 
lotteiy,  but  that  may  be  explained  by  the  fact  that  not  until  1792  did 
the  statutes  require  a  lottery  to  be  specially  authorized  by  the  legis- 
lature of  Maryland.  (See  acts  of  1792,  ch.  58,  sec.  1.) 

3.  The  title  to  Carrollsburg  was  in  Rozer,  Carroll,  and  Young,  who 
deeded  the  same  to  the  parties  drawing  the  lots  by  deeds  duly  executed 
and  recorded  here. 

4.  The  title  in  Hamburg  was  in  Jacob  Funk,  who  deeded,  etc. 

I  find  no  act  of  incorporation  for  either  of  these  towns  in  Kilty's 
Laws  of  Mar}7land,  and  hence  infer  they  were  never  incorporated,  as 
the  acts  incorporating  other  villages  and  towns  in  the  State  are  quite 
numerous  in  "  Kilty's." 
Truly,  yours, 

HENRY  BROOKE. 
UPPER  MARLBORO,  MD.,  September  29, 


APPENDIX  18. 

A  further  supplement  to  the  act  concerning  the  territory  of  Columbia 
and  the  city  of  Washington  (Lib.  J  G,  No.  2,  folio  82). 

certificates  to     Be  it  enacted  bu  the  qeneral  assembly  of  Maryland.  That 

be  sufficient,  etc.  9  v    s  •          9 

the  certificates  granted,  or  which  may  be  granted,  by  the 
said  commissioners,  or  any  two  of  them,  to  purchasers  of 
lots  in  the  said  city,  with  acknowledgment  of  the  payment 
of  the  whole  purchase  money,  and  interest,  if  any  shall 
have  arisen  thereon,  and  recorded  agreeabhr  to  the  direc- 
tions of  the  act  concerning  the  territory  of  Columbia  and 
the  city  of  Washington,  shall  be  sufficient  and  effectual  to 
vest  the  legal  estate  in  the  purchasers,  their  heirs  and 
assigns,  according  to  the  import  of  such  certificates,  with- 
out any  deed  or  formal  conveyance. 
a?d  ro1ertylto  ^'  And  be  it  enacted,  That  on  sales  of  lots  in  the  said 


etc  &gain  s°ld'  c^y  ky  the  said  commissioners,  or  any  two  of  them,  under 
terms  or  conditions  of  payment  being  made  therefor,  at 
any  day  or  days  after  such  contract  entered  into,  if  any 
sum  of  the  purchase  money  or  interest  shall  not  be  paid 
for  the  space  of  thirty  days  after  the  same  ought  to  be  paid, 
the  commissioners,  or  any  two  of  them,  may  sell  the  same 
lots  at  public  vendue,  in  the  city  of  Washington,  at  any 
time  after  sixty  days'  notice  of  such  sale,  in  some  of  the 
public  newspapers  of  Georgetown  and  Baltimoretown,  and 
retain  in  their  hands  sufficient  of  the  money  produced  by 
such  new  sale  to  satisfy  all  principal  and  interest  due  on 
the  first  contract,  together  with  the  expenses  of  advertise- 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  115 

ments  and  sale,  and  the  original  purchaser,  or  his  assigns, 
shall  be  entitled  to  receive  from  the  said  commissioners,  at 
their  treasury,  on  demand,  the  balance  of  the  money  which 
may  have  been  actually  received  by  them  or  under  their 
order  on  the  said  second  sale;  and  all  lots  so  sold  shall  be 
freed  and  acquitted  of  all  claim,  legal  and  equitable,  of  the 
first  purchaser,  his  heirs  and  assigns. 

III.  And  be  it  enacted.  That  the  commissioners  afore-    commissioners 

.  ,  ,    .,  .    ,  .        ,         ,.       to  appoint  a  day, 

said,  or  any  two  of  them,  may  appoint  a  certain  day  for  etc. 
the  allotment  and  assignment  of  one-half  of  the  quantity 
of  each  lot'  of  ground  in  Carrollsburgh  and  Hamburgh, 
not  before  that  time  divided  or  assigned,  pursuant  to  the 
said  act  concerning  the  territory  of  Columbia  and  the  city 
of  Washington,  and  on  notice  thereof  in  the  Annapolis, 
some  one  of  the  Baltimore,  the  Easton  and  Georgetown 
newspapers,  for  at  least  three  weeks,  the  same  commis- 
sioners may  proceed  to  the  allotment  and  assignment  of 
ground  within  the  said  city,  on  the  day  appointed  for  that 
purpose,  and  therein  proceed  at  convenient  times  till  the 
whole  be  finished,  as  if  the  proprietors  of  such  lots  actually 
resided  out  of  this  State:  Provided,  That  if  the  proprietor 
of  any  such  lot  shall  object  in  person,  or  by  writing  deliv- 
ered to  the  commissioners,  against  their  so  proceeding  as 
to  his  lot,  before  they  shall  have  made  an  assignment  of 
ground  for  the  same,  then  they  shall  forbear  as  to  such  lot, 
and  may  proceed  according  to  the  before-mentioned  act. 

IV.  And  be  it  enacted,  That  the  said  commissioners  sea"etc! make a 
may  make  a  seal  of  office  of  the  clerk  for  recording  deeds 

within  the  District  of  Columbia,  which  shall  be  kept  by 
him;  and  that  the  like  fees  shall  be  paid  for  and  the  like 
credit  shall  be  given  to  certificates  under  that  seal  as  to 
the  like  acts  under  the  seal  of  a  county  court,  and  the  said 
clerk  shall  be  entitled  to  demand  and  receive  his  fee  when 
the  services  enjoined  him  by  this  act  and  the  act  to  which 
this  is  a  further  supplement  shall  be  performed. 
Passed  the  28th  of  December,  1793. 


APPENDIX  19. 

AN  ACT  providing  a  permanent  form  of  government  for  the  District  of  Columbia. 

SECTION  1. 

1.  Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the 
United  States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  all  the  territory 
which  was  ceded  by  the  State  of  Maryland  to  the  Congress  of  the 


116  GOVERNMENT   OF    THE    DISTRICT    Ol    COLUMBIA. 

United  States  for  the  permanent  seat  of  the  Government  of  the  United 
States  shall  continue  to  be  designated  as  the  District  of  Columbia. 

2.  Said  District  and  the  property  and  persons  that  may  be  therein 
shall  be  subject  to  the  following  provisions  for  the  government  of  the 
same,  and  also  to  any  existing  laws  applicable  thereto  not  hereby 
repealed  or  inconsistent  with  the  provisions  of  this  act. 

3.  The  District  of  Columbia  shall  remain  and  continue  a  municipal 
corporation,  as  provided  in  section  two  of  the  Revised  Statutes  relat- 
ing to  said  District,  and  the  Commissioners  herein  provided  for  shall 
be  deemed  and  taken  as  officers  of  such  corporation. 

4.  And  all  laws  now  in  force  relating  to  the  District  of  Columbia 
not  inconsistent  with  the  provisions  of  this  act  shall  remain  in  full 
force  and  effect. 

SECTION  2. 

1.  That  within  twenty  days  after  the  approval  of  this  act  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States,  by  and  with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the 
Senate,  is  hereby  authorized  to  appoint  two  persons,  who,  with  an 
officer  of  the  Corps  of  Engineers  of  the  United  States  Army,  whose 
lineal  rank  shall  be  above  that  of  a  captain,  shall  be  Commissioners  of 
the  District  of  Columbia. 

JOINT  RESOLUTION  defining  a  quorum  of  the  Board  of  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia 

and  for  other  purposes. 

Resolved  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the  United  States  of  America  in 
Congress  assembled,  That  any  two  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia, 
sitting  as  a  board,  shall  constitute  a  quorum  for  the  transaction  of  business,  and  that 
the  senior  officer  of  the  Corps  of  Engineers  of  the  Army  who  shall  for  the  time  being 
be  detailed  to  act  as  assistant  (and  in  case  of  his  absence  from  the  District  or  disa- 
bility, the  junior  officer  so  detailed)  shall,  in  the  event  of  the  absence  from  the  Dis- 
trict or  disability  of  the  Commissioner  who  shall  for  the  time  being  be  detailed  from 
the  Corps  of  Engineers,  perform  all  the  duties  imposed  by  law  upon  said  Commis- 
sioner. Hereafter  such  Engineer  Commissioner  may,  in  the  discretion  of  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States,  be  detailed  from  among  the  captains  or  officers  of  higher 
grade  having  served  at  least  fifteen  years  in  the  Corps  of  Engineers  of  the  Army  of 
the  United  States. 

Approved  December  24,  1890. 

2.  And  who,  from  and  after  July  first,. eighteen  hundred  and  seventy- 
eight,  shall  exercise  all  the  powers  and  authority  now  vested  in  the 
Commissioners  of  said  District,  except  as  are  hereinafter  limited  or  pro- 
vided, and  shall  be  subject  to  all  restrictions  and  limitations  and  duties 
which  are  now  imposed  upon  said  Commissioners. 

3.  The  Commissioner,  who  shall  be  an  officer  detailed  from  time  to 
time  from  the  Corps  of  Engineers  by  the  President  for  this  duty,  shall 
not  be  required  to  perform  any  other,  nor  shall-  he  receive  any  other 
compensation  than  his  regular  pay  and  allowances  as  an  officer  of  the 
Army. 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  117 

Salary  of  Engineer  Commissioner  fixed  at  $5,000,  U.  S.  Stat.  at  L.,  vol.  21,  p.  460. 

Hereafter  the  operations  of  the  water  department  of  the  D.  C.  shall  be  under  the 
direction  of  the  Engineer's  Office  of  the  District,  subject  to  the  control  of  the  Com- 
missioners, vol.  22,  p.  143. 

4.  The  two  persons  appointed  from  civil  life  shall,  at  the  time  of 
their  appointment,  be  citizens  of  the  United  States,  and  shall  have 
been  actual  residents  of  the  District  of  Columbia  for  three  years  next 
before  their  appointment,  and  have,  during  that  period,  claimed  resi- 
dence nowhere  else; 

5.  And  one  of  said  three  Commissioners  shall  be  chosen  president 
of  the  Board  of  Commissioners  at  their  first  meeting,  and  annually  and 
whenever  a  vacancy  shall  occur  thereafter; 

6.  And  said  Commissioners  shall  each  of  them,  before  entering  upon 
the  discharge  of  his  duties,  take  an  oath  or  affirmation  to  support  the 
Constitution    of  the  United  States,  and  to  faithfully  discharge  the 
duties  imposed  upon  him  by  law; 

7.  And  said  Commissioners  appointed    from  civil  life  shall  each 
receive  for  his  services  a  compensation  at  the  rate  of  five  thousand 
dollars  per  annum,  and  shall,  before  entering  upon  the  duties  of  the 
office,  each  give  bond  in  the  sum  of  fifty  thousand  dollars,  with  surety 
as  is  required  by  existing  law. 

8.  The  official  term  of  said  Commissioners  appointed  from  civil  life 
shall  be  three  years,  and  until  their  successors  are  appointed  and  qual- 
ified; but  the  first  appointment  shall  be  one  Commissioner  for  one 
year  and  one  for  two  years,  and  at  the  expiration  of  their  respective 
terms  their  successors  shall  be  appointed  for  three  years. 

(Attorney  General  Devens  rendered  an  opinion  July  7,  1880,  that  the  term  of 
office  of  the  Commissioners  appointed  from  civil  life  is  three  years,  and  not  for 
unexpired  balance  of  their  predecessor's  terms.) 

9.  Neither  of  said  Commissioners,  nor  any  officer  whatsoever  of  the 
District  of   Columbia,  shall  be  accepted  as  surety  upon  any  bond 
required  to  be  given  to  the  District  of  Columbia; 

10.  Nor  shall  any  contractor  be  accepted  as  surety  for  any  officer  or 
other  contractor  in  said  District. 

SECTION  3. 

1.  That  as  soon  as  the  Commissioners  appointed  and  detailed  as 
aforesaid  shall  have  taken  and  subscribed  the  oath  or  affirmation  herein- 
before required,  all  the  powers,  rights,  duties,  and  privileges  lawfully 
exercised  by,  and  all  property,  estate,  and  effects  now  vested  by  law 
in  the  Commissioners  appointed  under  the  provisions  of  the  act  of 
Congress  approved  June  twentieth,  eighteen  hundred  and  seventy -four, 
shall  be  transferred  to  and  vested  in  and  imposed  upon  said  Commis- 
sioners; and  the  functions  of  the  Commissioners  so  appointed  under 


118  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

the  act  of  June  twentieth,  eighteen  hundred  and  seventy-four,  shall 
cease  and  determine.  j 

2.  And  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  have 
power,  subject  to  the  limitations  and  provisions  herein  contained,  to 
apply  the  taxes  and  other  revenues  of  said  District  to  the  payment  of 
the  current  expenses  thereof,  to  the  support  of  the  public  schools,  the 
fire  department  and  the  police,  and  for  that  purpose  shall  take  posses- 
sion and  supervision  of  all  the  offices,  books,  papers,  records,  moneys, 
credits,  securities,  assets,  and  accounts  belonging-  or  appertaining  to 
the  business  or  interests  of  the  government  of  the  District  of  Columbia, 
and  exercise  the  duties,  powers,  and  authority  aforesaid; 

Commissioners — 

expenditures  of,  not  to  exceed  appropriations,  vol.  22,  p.  470. 

shall  not  make  requisitions  on  U.  S.  for  greater  sums  than  on  revenues  from  D.  C., 

vol.  22,  p.  471. 
duties  of,  respecting  "low  grounds"  transferred  to  Secretary  Interior,  vol.  21, 

p.  47. 
shall  not  make  requisition  on  the  U.  S.  Treasury  for  a  larger  amount  than  from 

the  revenues  of  the  D.  C.,  vol.  29,  p.  684. 
hospital  for  foundlings,  to  report  to,  act  March  3,  1909. 

3.  But  said  Commissioners,    in  the  exercise  of  such  duties,  powers, 
and  authority,  shall  make  no  contract,  nor  incur  any  obligation  other 
than  such  contracts  and  obligations  as  are  hereinafter  provided  for  and 
shall  be  approved  by  Congress. 

4.  The  Commissioners  shall  have  power  to  locate  the  places  where 
hacks  shall  stand  and  change  them  as  often  as  the  public  interests 
require. 

5.  Any  person  violating  any  orders  lawfully  made  in  pursuance  of 
this  power  shall  be  subject  to  a  fine  of  not  less  than  ten  nor  more  than 
one  hundred  dollars,  to  be  recovered  before  any  justice  of  the  peace  in 
an  action  in  the  name  of  the  Commissioners. 

The  attorney  for  the  District  holds  that  the  Act  of  January  26, 1887  (24  Stat.,  368), 
repeals  paragraph  5.     (See  "AUTHORITY  TO  MAKE  PUBLIC  VEHICLE  RATES,"  p.  177.) 

6.  All  taxes  heretofore  lawfully  assessed  and  due,  or  to  become  due, 
shall  be  collected  pursuant  to  law,  except  as  herein  otherwise  provided; 

7.  But  said  Commissioners  shall  have  no  power  to  anticipate  taxes 
by  a  sale  or  hypothecation  of  any  such  taxes  or  evidences  thereof; 

8.  But  they  may  borrow,  for  the  first  fiscal  year  after  this  act  takes 
effect,  in  anticipation  of  collection  of  revenues,  not  to  exceed  two  hun- 
dred thousand  dollars,  at  a  rate  of  interest  not  exceeding  five  per 
centum  per  annum,  which  shall  be  repaid  out  of  the  revenues  of  that 
year. 

9.  And  said  Commissioners  are  hereby  authorized  to  abolish  any 
office,  to  consolidate  two  or  more  offices,  reduce  the  number  of  em- 
ployees, remove  from  office,  and  make  appointments  to  any  office  under 
thenrauthorized  by  law; 


GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF   COLUMBIA.  119 

10.  Said  Commissioners  shall  have  power  to  erect,  light  and  main- 
tain lamp-posts,  with  lamps,  outside  of  the  city  limits,  when,  in  their 
judgment,  it  shall  be  deemed  proper  or  necessarj7: 

Provided,  That  nothing  in  this  act  contained  shall  be  construed  to 
abate  in  any  wise  or  interfere  with  any  suit  pending  in  favor  of  or 
against  the  District  of  Columbia  or  the  Commissioners  thereof,  or 
affect  any  right,  penalty,  forfeiture,  or  cause  of  action  existing  in 
favor  of  said  District  or  Commissioners,  or  any  citizen  of  the  District 
of  Columbia,  or  any  other  person,  but  the  same  may  be  commenced, 
proceeded  for,  or  prosecuted  to  final  judgment,  and  the  corporation 
shall  be  bound  thereby  as  if  the  suit  had  been  originally  commenced 
for  or  against  said  corporation. 

12.  The  said  Commissioners  shall  submit  to  the  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury  for  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  thirtieth,  eighteen  hundred 
and  seventy-nine,  and  annually  thereafter,  for  his  examination  and 
approval,  a  statement  showing  in  detail  the  work  proposed  to  be  under- 
taken by  them  during  the  fiscal  year  next  ensuing,  and  the  estimated 
cost  thereof; 

13.  Also  the  cost  of  constructing,  repairing,  and  maintaining  all 
bridges  authorized  by  law  across  the  Potomac  River  within  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia,  and  also  all  other  streams  in  said  District;  the  cost 
of  maintaining  all  public  institutions  of  charity,  reformatories,  and 
prisons  belonging  to  or  controlled  wholly  or  in  part  by  the  District  of 
Columbia,  and  which  are  now  by  law  supported  wholly  or  in  part  by 
the  United  States  or  District  of  Columbia;  and  also  the  expenses  of 
the  Washington  Aqueduct  and  its  appurtenances;  and  also  an  itemized 
statement  and  estimate  of  the  amount  necessary  to  defray  the  expenses 
of  the  government  of  the  District  of  Columbia  for  the  next  fiscal  year: 

Estimates  for  water  department  shall  be  included  in  estimates  of  Commissioners, 
vol.  21,  p.  466. 

Estimates  shall  be  submitted  to  Congress  through  Secretary  of  Treasury  by  Octo- 
ber 15th  of  each  year  (31  Stats.,  1009)  (23  Stat,  254). 

Shall  not  exceed  twice  the  estimated  revenues  for  fiscal  year,  act  March  3,  1909. 

Estimates  for  Freedman's  Hospital  shall  hereafter  be  made  by  Commissioners, 
vol.  27,  p.  373. 

Shall  include  cost  of  defending  suits  in  Court  of  Claims,  vol.  24,  p.  253. 

Shall  include  estimates  for  Columbia  Institution  for  Deaf  and  Dumb,  vol.  25,  p.  962. 

Shall  include  expense  of  militia,  vol.  25,  p.  780. 

Shall  include  care  of  feeble-minded  children,  vol.  26,  p.  393. 

Shall  include  expenses  of  support  of  D.  C.  convicts,  vol.  26,  p.  408. 

Shall  include  provision  for  Board  of  Assistant  Assessors  and  its  clerk,  vol.  28,  p.  285. 

Shall  include  salaries  of  the  force  necessary  for  the  care  and  protection  of  the  Court 
House,  vol.  28,  p.  202. 

Shall  include  salary  of  the  Warden  of  the  District  Jail,  vol.  28,  p.  202. 

Shall  include  expense  of  maintaining  prisoners  in  the  District  Jail,  vol.  28,  p..  417. 

Shall  include  expense  of  insane,  vol.  20,  p.  230. 

Shall  not  be  published  in  advance  of  submission  to  Congress,  act  March  3,  1909. 


120  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

Annual,  shall  include  statement  of  number  and  compensation  of  employees  appro- 
priated for  in  one  office  and  detailed  to  another  for  longer  than  one  year,  vol.  28,  p.  808. 

And  hereafter  one-half  of  the  cost  of  the  maintenance  and  repair  of  any  bridge 
across  Rock  Creek  occupied  by  the  tracks  of  a  street  railway  or  railways  shall  be 
borne  by  the  said  railway  company  or  companies,  and  shall  be  collected  in  the  same 
manner  as  the  cost  of  laying  pavements  between  the  rails  and  tracks  of  street  rail- 
ways as  provided  for  in  section  five  of  '  'An  act  providing  a  permanent  form  of  gov- 
ernment for  the  District  of  Columbia,"  approved  June  11,  1878.  The  amounts  thus 
collected  shall  be  deposited  to  the  credit  of  the  appropriation  for  the  fiscal  year  in 
which  they  are  collected.  U.  S.  Stat.,  vol.  28,  p.  252. 

14.  Provided,  That  nothing  herein  contained  shall  be  construed  as 
transferring   from  the  United  States  authorities  any  of  the  public 
works  within  the  District  of  Columbia  now  in  the  control  or  super- 
vision of  said  authorities. 

The  following  which  were  in  charge  of  U.  S.  officers  have  since  been  transferred 
to  Commissioners. 

The  reservations  formed  by  intersecting  avenues  and  streets  were  apportioned 
between  Superintendent  of  Public  Buildings  and  Grounds  and  the  Commissioners, 
February  16,  1889,  by  L.  S.  38,693.  C.  O. 

Bennings,  Anacostia  and  Chain  Bridges — transferred  to  charge  of  Commissioners, 
vol.  24,  p.  132. 

Bridge  at  Penna.  Ave.,  over  Eastern  Branch,  transferred  to  Commissioners  July 
28,  1890.  L.  R.  167^,768.  C.  O. 

Aqueduct  Bridge  over  Potomac,  placed  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Commissioners 
July  18,  1888,  vol.  25,  p.  319. 

All  bridges  in  D.  C.  except  the  Aqueduct  Bridge  over  Rock  Creek,  placed  under 
control  of  Commissioners,  vol.  27,  p.  544. 

Bridges,  Commissioners  shall  make  regulations  for  public  safety  on,  vol.  27,  p.  544. 

15.  The  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  shall  carefully  consider  all  esti- 
mates submitted  to  him  as  above  provided,  and  shall  approve,  dis- 
approve, or  suggest  such  changes  in  the  same,  or  any  item  thereof, 
as  he  may  think  the  public  interest  demands;  and  after  he  shall  have 
considered  and  passed  upon  such  estimates  submitted  to  him,  he  shall 
cause  to  be  made  a  statement  of  the  amount  approved  by  him  and  the 
fund  or  purpose  to  which  each  item  belongs,  which  statement  shall  be 
certified  by  him,  and  delivered,  together  with  the  estimates  as  originally 
submitted,  to  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of   Columbia,   who 
shall  transmit  the  same  to  Congress. 

16.  To  the  extent  to  which  Congress  shall  approve  of  said  estimates, 
Congress  shall  appropriate  the  amount  of  fifty  per  centum  thereof; 

17.  And  the  remaining  fifty  per  centum  of  such  approved  estimates 
shall  be  levied  and  assessed  upon  the  taxable  property  and  privileges 
in  said  District  other  than  the  property  of  the  United  States  and  of 
the  District  of  Columbia; 

18.  And  all  proceedings  in  the  assessing,  equalizing  and  levying  of 
said  taxes,  the  collection  thereof,  the  listing  return  and  penalty  for 
taxes  in  arrears,  the  advertising  for  sale  and  the  sale  of  property  for 
delinquent  taxes,  the  redemption  thereof,  the  proceedings  to  enforce 
the  lien  upon  unredeemed  property,  and  every  other  act  and  thing  now 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  121 

required  to  be  done  in  the  premises,  shall  be  done  and  performed  at 
the  times  and  in  the  manner  now  provided  by  law,  except  in  so  far  as 
is  otherwise  provided  by  this  act; 

19.  Provided,  That  the  rate  of  taxation  in  any  one  year  shall  not 
exceed  one -dollar  and  fifty  cents  on  every  one  hundred  dollars  of  real 
estate  not  exempted  by  law;  and  on  personal  property  not  taxable 
elsewhere,  one  dollar  and  fifty  cents  on  every  one  hundred  dollars, 
according  to  the  cash  valuation  thereof  (see  pp.  146,  163); 

20.  And  provided  further,  Upon  real  property  held  and  used  exclu- 
sively for  agricultural  purposes,  without  the  limits  of  the  cities  of 
Washington  and  Georgetown,  and  to  be  so  designated  by  the  assessors 
in  their  annual  returns,  the  rate  for  any  one  year  shall  not  exceed  one 
dollar  on  every  one  hundred  dollars.     (Rate  fixed  at  $1.50  per  $100, 
p.  616.) 

21.  The  collector  of  taxes,  upon  the  receipt  of  the  duplicate  of  assess- 
ment, shall  give  notice  for  one  week,  in  one  newspaper  published  in 
the  city  of  Washington,  that  he  is  ready  to  receive  taxes; 

22.  And  an}^  person  who  shall,  within  thirty  days  after  such  notice 
given,  pay  the  taxes  assessed  against  him,  shall  be  allowed  by  the 
collector  a  deduction  of  five  per  centum  on  the  amount  of  his  tax; 

Provision  allowing  deduction  for  prompt  payment  of  taxes  repealed,  vol.  22,  p.  571. 

23.  All  penalties  imposed  by  the  act  approved  March  third,  eight- 
een hundred  and  seventy-seven,  chapter  one  hundred  and  seventeen, 
upon  delinquents  for  default  in  the  payment  of  taxes  levied  under  said 
act,  at  the  times  specified  therein,  shall,  upon  payment  of  the  said 
taxes  assessed  against  such  delinquent  within  three  months  from  the 
passage  of  this  act,  with  interest  at  the  rate  of  six  per  cent,  thereon, 
be  remitted. 

SECTION  4. 

1.  That  the  said  Commissioners  may,  by  general  regulations  consist- 
ent with  the  act  of  Congress  of  March  third,  eighteen  hundred  and 
seventy -seven,  entitled  "An  act  for  the  support  of  the  government  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  for  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  thirtieth, 
eighteen  hundred  and  seventy-eight,  and  for  other  purposes,"  or  with 
other  existing  laws,  prescribe  the  time  or  times  for  the  payment  of  all 
taxes  and  the  duties  of  assessors  and  collectors  in  relation  thereto. 

(See  "Methods  of  Taxation,"  p.  143  et  seq.) 

2.  All  taxes  "collected  shall  be  paid  into  the  Treasury  of  the  United 
States,  and  the  same,  as  well  as  the  appropriations  to  be  made  by  Con- 
gress as  aforesaid,  shall  be  disbursed  for  the  expenses  of  said  District, 
on  itemized  vouchers,  which  shall  have  been  audited  and  approved  by 
the  Auditor  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  certified  by  said  Commis- 
sioners, or  a  majority  of  them; 

Balances  of  appropriations  remaining  at  end  of  two  years  from  close  of  fiscal  year 
shall  be  covered  into  Treasury  to  credit  of  U.  S.  and  D.  C.  equally,  vol.  25,  p.  808. 


122  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

3.  And  the  accounts  of  said  Commissioners,  and  the  tax  collectors, 
and  all  other  officers  required  to  account,  shall  be  settled  and  adjusted 
by  the  accounting-  officers  of  the  Treasury  Department  of  the  United 
States. 

4.  Hereafter  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  shall  pay  the  interest  on 
the  three-sixty-five  bonds  of  the  District  of  Columbia  issued  in  pursu- 
ance of  the  act  of  Congress  approved  Ju\ie  twentieth,  eighteen  hundred 
and  seventy-four,  when  the  same  shall  become  due  and  paj^able;  and 
all  amounts  so  paid  shall  be  credited  as  a  part  of  the  appropriation  for 
the  year  by  the  United  States  toward  the  expenses  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  as  hereinbefore  provided. 

SECTION  5. 

1.  That  hereafter  when  any  repairs  of  streets,  avenues,  alleys,  or 
sewers  within  the  District  of  Columbia  are  to  be  made,  or  when  new 
pavements  are  to  be  substituted  in  place  of  those  worn  out,  new  ones 
laid,  or  new  streets  opened,  sewers  Ijuilt,  or  any  works  the  total  cost 
of  which  shall  exceed  the  sum  of  one  thousand  dollars,  notice  shall  be 
given  in  one  newspaper  in  Washington,  and  if  the  total  cost  shall 
exceed  five  thousand  dollars,  then  in  one  newspaper  in  each  of  the  cities 
of  New  York,  Philadelphia,  and  Baltimore,  also  for  one  week,  for  pro- 
posals, with  full  specifications  as  to  material  for  the  whole  or  any  por- 
tion of  the  works  proposed  to  be  done. 

2.  And  the  lowest  responsible  proposal  for  the  kind  and  character 
of  pavement  or  other  work  which  the  Commissioners  shall  determine 
upon  shall  in  all  cases  be  accepted: 

3.  Provided,  however,  That  the  Commissioners  shall  have  the  right, 
in  their  discretion,  to  reject  all  of  such  proposals: 

4.  Provided,  That  work  capable  of  being  executed  under  a  single 
contract  shall  not  be  subdivided  so  as  to  reduce  the  sum  of  money  to 
be  paid  therefor  to  less  than  one  thousand  dollars. 

5.  All  contracts  for  the  construction,  improvement,  alteration,  or 
repairs  of  the  streets,  avenues,  highways,  alleys,  gutters,  sewers,  and 
all  work  of  like  nature  shall  be  made  and  entered  into  only  by  and 
with   the   official   unanimous   consent  of  the   Commissioners  of  the 
District. 

(See  note  after  paragraph  1,  section  2,  as  to  quorum  of  Board.) 

6.  And  all  contracts  shall  be  copied  into  a  book  kept  for  that  pur- 
pose and  be  signed  by  the  said  Commissioners,  and  no  contract  involv- 
ing an  expenditure  of  more  than  one  hundred  dollars  shall  be  valid 
until  recorded  and  signed  as  aforesaid. 

The  First  Comptroller  verbally  advised  Commissioners  that  books  composed  of 
original  copies  of  contracts  bound  together  would  meet  the  requirements  of  this  law 
as  to  copying  contracts  into  a  book. 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  123 

7.  No  pavement  shall  be  accepted  nor  any  pavements  laid  except  that 
of  the  best  material  of  its  kind  known  for  that  purpose,  laid  in  the 
most  substantial  manner; 

8.  And  good  and  sufficient  bonds  to  the  United  States,  in  a  penal 
sum   not  less  than  the  amount  of  the  contract,  with  sureties  to  be 
approved  by  the  Commissioners  of  District  of  Columbia,  shall  be 
required  from  all  contractors,  guaranteeing  that  the  terms  of  their 
contract  shall  be  strictly  and  faithfully  performed  to  the  satisfaction 
of  and  acceptance  by  said  Commissioners  (see  Officers'  and  Contractors'' 
bonds,  p.  180,  for  modification  of  this  restriction) ; 

9.  And  that  the  contractors  shall  keep  new  pavements  or  other  new 
works  in  repair  for  a  term  of  five  jrears  from  the  date  of  the  comple- 
tion of  their  contracts  (see  Term  of  Contractors'  Liability, p,  181); 

10.  And  ten  per  centum  of  the  cost  of  all  new  work  shall  be  retained 
as  an  additional  security  and  a  guarantee  fund  to  keep  the  same  in  repair 
for  said  term,  which  said  per  centum  shall  be  invested  in  registered 
bonds  of  the  United  States  or  of  the  District  of  Columbia  and  the  inter- 
est thereon  paid  to  said  contractors.     (See  fietents  from  Contractors, 
p.  181.) 

Contractors'  retains:  "All  moneys  which  have  been  or  may  hereafter  be  legally 
retained  from  contractors  may  be  invested  in  bonds  of  the  United  States  or  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia  and  held  by  the  Treasurer  of  the  United  States,  and  any  sum  which 
has  been  or  shall  be  realized  from  such  investments  in  excess  of  the  amounts  due  to 
contractors  shall  be  deposited  in  the  Treasury  to  the  credit  of  the  United  States  and 
of  the  District  of  Columbia  in  equal  parts,"  vol.  23,  p.  313;  or  the  Treasurer  of  U.  S. 
may  retain  said  money  without  interest,  or  invest  same  at  the  request  and  risk  of  the 
contractor,  when  amount  is  over  $100,  at  his  discretion,  vol.  24,  p.  501. 

11.  The  cost  of  laying  down  said  pavement,  sewers,  and  other  works, 
or  of  repairing  the  same,  shall  be  paid  for  in  the  following  propor- 
tions and  manner,  to  wit:  When  any  street  or  avenue  through  which 
a  street  railway  runs  shall  be  paved,  such  railway  company  shall  bear 
all  of  the  expense  for  that  portion  of  the  work  lying  between  the  exte- 
rior rails  of  the  tracks  of  such  roads,  and  for  a  distance  of  two  feet 
from  and  exterior  to  such  track  or  tracks  on  each  side  thereof,  and  of 
keeping  the  same  in  repair; 

12.  But  the  said  railway  companies,  having  conformed  to  the  grades 
established  by  the  Commissioners,  may  use  such  cobblestone  or  Bel- 
gian blocks  for  paving  their  tracks,  or  the  space  between  their  tracks, 
as  the  Commissioners  may  direct; 

13.  The  United  States  shall  pay  one-half  of  the  cost  of  all  work  done 
under  the  provisions  of  this  section,  except  that  done  by  the  railway 
companies,  which  payment  shall  be  credited  as  part  of  the  fifty  per 
centum  which  the   United  States  contributes  toward  the  expenses  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  for  that  year; 

(Except  permit  work.     28  Stats.,  247.) 

14.  And  all  payments  shall  be  made  by  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury 
on  the  warrant  or  order  of   the  Commissioners  of   the  District  of 


124  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

Columbia  or  a  majority  thereof,  in  such  amounts  and  at  such  times  as 
they  may  deem  safe  and  proper  in  view  of  the  progress  of  the  work. 

A  disbursing  officer  shall  be  appointed  by  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  ot 
Columbia,  who  shall  give  bond  to  the  United  States  in  the  sum  of  fifty  thousand 
dollars,  conditioned  for  the  faithful  performance  of  the  duties  of  his  office  in  the 
disbursing  and  accounting,  according  to  law,  for  all  moneys  of  the  United  States  and 
of  the  District  of  Columbia  that  may  come  into  his  hands,  which  bond  shall  be 
approved  by  the  said  Commissioners  and  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  and  be  filed 
in  the  office  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury:  Provided,  That  hereafter  advances  in 
money  shall  be  made  on  the  requisition  of  said  Commissioners  to  the  said  disbursing 
officer  instead  of  to  the  Commissioners,  and  he  shall  account  for  the  same  as  now 
required  by  law  of  the  said  Commissioners. 

That  hereafter  all  accounts  for  the  disbursement  of  appropriations  made  either 
from  the  revenues  of  the  District  of  Columbia  or  jointly  from  the  revenues  of  the 
United  States  and  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  be  audited  by  the  Auditor  of  the 
District  of  Columbia  before  being  transmitted  to  the  accounting  officers  of  the  Treas- 
ury, unless  otherwise  specifically  provided  in  the  law  making  such  appropriations: 
Provided,  That  this  provision  shall  not  apply  to  disbursements  on  account  of  the 
court  of  appeals  and  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  for  interest 
and  sinking  fund  on  the  funded  debt  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  which  disburse- 
ments shall  continue  to  be  audited  as  heretofore  provided  by  law.  (June  30,  1898.) 

15.  That  if  any  street  railway  company  shall  neglect  or  refuse  to 
perform  the  work  required  by  this  act,  said  pavement  shall  be  laid 
between  the  tracks  and  exterior  thereto  of  such  railway  by  the  District 
of  Columbia; 

16.  And  if  such  company  shall  fail  or  refuse  to  pay  the  sum  due 
from  them  in  respect  of  the  work  done  by  or  under  the  orders  of  the 
proper  officials  of  said  District  in  such  case  of  the  neglect  or  refusal  of 
such  railway  company  to  perform  the  work  required  as  aforesaid,  the 
Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  issue  certificates  of 
indebtedness  against  the  property,  real  or  personal,  of  such  railway 
company,  which  certificates  shall  bear  interest  at  the  rate  of  ten  per 
centum  per  annum  until  paid,  and  which,  until  they  are  paid,  shall 
remain  and  be  a  lien  upon  the  property  on  or  against  which  they  are 
issued  together  with  the  franchise  of  said  company; 

17.  And  if  the  said  certificates  are  not  paid  within  one  year,  the  said 
Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  may  proceed  to  sell  the 
property  against  which  they  are  issued,  or  so  much  thereof  as  may  be 
necessary  to  pay  the  amount  due,  such  sale  to  be  first  duly  advertised 
daily  for  one  week  in  some  newspaper  published  in  the  city  of  Wash- 
ington, and  to  be  at  public  auction  to  the  highest  bidder. 

18.  When  street  railways  cross  any  street  or  avenue,  the  pavement 
between  the  tracks  of  such  railway  shall  conform  to  the  pavement  used 
upon  such  street  or  avenue,  and  the  companies  owning  these  intersect- 
ing railroads  shall  pay  for  such  pavements  in  the  same  manner  and 
proportion  as  required  of  other  railway  companies  under  the  provisions 
of  this  section. 


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Sec.   3709 f  Revised  Stats.  U.  3.     All  purchases  and 
contracts  for  supplies  or  services,  in  any  of  the  De- 
partments of  the  Government,  except  for  personal  ser- 
vices, shall  be  made  by  advertising  a  sufficient  time 
previously  for  proposals  respecting  the  sane,  when 
the  public  exigencies  do  not  require  the  immediate 
delivery  of  the  articles,  or  performance  of  the  ser- 
vice •     Vyhen  immediate  delivery  or  performance  is  re- 
quired by  the  public  exigency,  the  articles  or  ser- 
vice required  may  be  procurred  by  open  purchase  or 
contract,  at  the  places  and  in  the  manner  in  which 
such  articles  are  usually  bought  and  sold,  or  such 
services  engaged,  between  individuals. 

An  Act  To  amend  section  thirty-seven  hundred  and 
nine  of  the  Revised  Statutes,  relating  to  contracts 
for  supplies  in  the  Departments  at  Washington. 
BE  IT  MACTED  BY  THE  SSHATE  AND  BDUSE  OF  BEEBES2HT- 
JKSI7SS  OP  THB  WITW  95  ATES  OP  AMERICA  IS  005<SRESS 
ASSEMBLE,  THat  section  thirty-seven  hundred  and 
nine  of  the  Devised  Statutes  is  emended  by  adding 
thereto  the  following: 

And  the  advertisement  for  such  proposals  shall 
be  made  by  all  the  Executive  Departments,  including 
the  Department  of  Labor,  the  United  States  Fish  Com- 
mission, the  Interstate  Commerce  Commission,  the 
Smithsonian  Institution,  the  Government  Printing  Of- 
fice, the  government  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  and 
the  superintendent  of  the  State,  ?/ar,  r.nd  Uavy  Build- 
ing, except  for  peper  and  materials  for  use  of  the 
Government  Printing  Office,  and  materials  used  in 
the  -work  of  the   Bureau  of  itograving  and  Printing, 
-which  shall  continue  to  be  advertised  for  and  pur- 
chased as  now  provided  by  law,  on  the  same  days  and 
shall  each  designate  two  o'clock  post  meridian  of 
such  days  for  the  opoaing  of  all  such  proposals  in 
each  Department  and  other  Government  establishment 
in  the  city  of  Washington;     and  the  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury  shall  designate  the  day  or  days  in  each 
year  for  the  opening  of  such  proposals  and  give  due 
notice  thereof  to  the  other  Departments  and  Govern- 
ment establishments.     Such  proposals  shall  be  opened 
in  tho  usual  way  rjid  schedules  thereof  duly  prepared 
and,  together  Tlth  the  statement  of  the  proposed 
action  of  each  Department  r,nd  Government  establish- 
ment thereon,  shall  bo  submitted  ':o  c.  board,  con- 
sisting of  one  of  the  Assistant  Secretaries  of  the 
_  _  ,          ,  ;  •  i  ._       . 

Treasury  and  Interior  Departments  nnd  one  of  the  As- 
sistant Postmasters-General,  usho  shall  be  designated 
by  the  heads  of  said  Departments  and  the  Postmaster- 
General  respectively,  at  a  meeting  to  be  called  by 
tho  official  of  the  Treasury  Department,  who  shall 


GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  125 

19.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of 
Columbia  to  see  that  all  water  and  gas  mains,  service  pipes,  and  sewer 
connections  are  laid  upon  any  street  or  avenue  proposed  to  be  paved 
or  otherwise  improved  before  any  such  pavement  or  other  permanent 
works  are  put  down ; 

The  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are  hereby  authorized,  whenever 
the  roadway  of  a  street  is  about  to  be  paved  or  macadamized,  to  make  service 
connections  in  such  street  for  all  abutting  lots  and  premises  with  the  water  mains 
and  sewer  provided '  for  the  service  of  said  lots  and  premises.  The  entire  cost  of 
the  said  connections  shall  be  paid  from  the  current  appropriations  respectively  for 
the  extension  of  the  sewer  and  water  supply  systems,  and  shall  be  assessed  against 
the  abutting  property,  and  collected  in  like  manner  as  assessments  which  are 
levied  under  the  compulsory  permit  system;  the  sum  so  collected  shall  be  credited 
to  the  respective  appropriations  for  the  extension  of  the  sewer  and  water  supply 
systems  for  the  fiscal  year  during  which  said  collections  are  made.  U.  S.  Stat., 
vol.  28,  p.  44. 

20.  And  the  Washington  Gas-Light  Company,  under  the  direction 
of  said  Commissioners,  shall,  at  its  own  expense  take  up,  lay,  and 
replace  all  gas  mains  on  any  street  or  avenue  to  be  paved,  at  such 
time  and  place  as  said  Commissioners  shall  direct. 

21.  The  President  of  the  United  States  may  detail  from  the  Engi- 
neer Corps  of  the  Army  not  more  than  two  officers,  of  rank  subordi- 
nate to  that   of   the   Engineer  Officer   belonging   to   the   Board  of 
Commissioners  of  said  District  to  act  as  assistants  to  said  Engineer 
Commissioner,  in  the  discharge  of  the  special  duties  imposed  upon 
him  by  the  provisions  of  this  act. 

Provided,  That  the  last  clause  of  section  five  of  "An  act  providing  a  permanent  form 
or  the  District  of  Columbia,  approved  June  11,  1878,"  is  hereby  amended,  so  as 
to  read  as  folows: 

The  President  of  the  United  States  may  detail  from  the  Engineer  Corps  of  the  Army 
not  more  than  three  officers,  junior  to  the  engineer  officer  belonging  to  the  Board 
of  Commissioners  of  said  District  to  act  as  assistant  to  said  Engineer  Commissioner 
in  the  discharge  of  the  special  duties  imposed  upon  him  by  the  provisions  of  this 
act.  (28  Stat.,  236.) 

(See  joint  resolution  following  clause  I,  section  2,  for  further  duties  of  these 
assistants. ) 

SECTION  6. 

1.  That  from  and  after  the  first  day  of  July,  eighteen  hundred  and 
seventy-eight,  the  Board  of  Metropolitan  Police  and  the  Board  of 
School  Trustees  shall  be  abolished;  and  all  the  powers  and  duties  now 
exercised  by  them  shall  be  transferred  to  the  said  Commissioners  of 
the  District  of  Columbia,  who  shall  have  authority  to  employ  such 
officers  and  agents  and  to  adopt  such  provisions  as  may  be  necessary 
to  carry  into  execution  the  powers  and  duties  devolved  upon  them 
by  this  act. 

2.  And  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  from 
time  to  time  appoint  nineteen  persons,  actual  residents  of  said  District 


<*& 

OF     • 

UNIVERSITY 


126  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

of  Columbia,  to  constitute  the  trustees  of  Public  Schools  of  said  Dis- 
trict, who  shall  serve  without  compensation  andybr  such  terms  as  said 
Commissioners  shall  fix.  Said  trustees  shall  have  the  powers  and  per- 
form the  duties  in  relation  to  the  care  and  management  of  the  Public 
Schools  which  are  now  authorized  by  law. 

Complete  jurisdiction  over  the  public  schools  of  the  District  of  Columbia  is  vested 
in  a  Board  of  Education,  consisting  of  nine  members,  three  of  whom  shall  be  women, 
appointed  by  the  supreme  court  of  said  District.  (34Stat.,pt.  1,316.)  (Seealsop.  181.) 

SECTION  7. 

That  the  offices  of  sinking-fund  commissioners  are  hereby  abolished; 
and  all  duties  and  powers  possessed  by  said  commissioners  are  trans- 
ferred to,  and  shall  be  exercised  by,  the  Treasurer  of  the  United 
States,  who  shall  perform  the  same  in  accordance  with  the  provisions 
of  existing  laws. 

Sinking  fund  and  interest:  Treasurer  may  invest  in  any  District  bonds  he  may 
deem  most  advantageous,  vol.  22,  p.  470. 

Appropriations  for  sinking  fund  and  interest  shall  be  drawn  only  on  requisition  of 
Treasurer  U.  S.,  vol.  22,  p.  470. 

Hereafter  any  amount  appropriated  for  any  fiscal  year  may  be  consolidated  with 
the  unexpended  balances  of  appropriations  for  interest  and  sinking  fund  for  the  years 
preceding,  vol.  23,  p.  131. 

Treasurer  U.  S.  shall  redeem  Board  of  Audit  certificates,  vol.  21,  p.  286. 

Treasurer  IT.  S.  shall  pay  judgments  of  Court  of  Claims  with  3-65  bonds  or  pro- 
ceeds thereof,  vol.  21,  p.  466. 

Any  excess  sums  hereby  or  hereafter  appropriated  for  the  sinking 
fund  over  and  above  the  amount  required  for  the  payment  of  .the  inter- 
est on  the  funded  debt  of  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  be  applied  by 
the  Treasury  of  the  United  States  to  the  purchase  and  redemption  of  the 
bonds  of  the  District  of  Columbia:  Provided,  That  should  the  Treasurer 
of  the  United  States  at  any  time  be  unable  to  secure  bonds  of  the  District 
of  Columbia  at  a  price  which  he  may  deem  advantageous,  he  is  hereby 
authorized  to  invest  the  amount  available  for  the  said  sinking  fund  in 
bonds  of  the  United  States,  the  bonds  so  purchased  to  be  registered  in 
the  name  of  the  Treasurer  of  the  United  States,  trustee  for  the  sinking 
fund  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  Treas- 
urer of  the  United  States  to  collect  the  interest,  when  due  on  the 
bonds  so  held,  and  to  invest  the  same  for  account  of  said  sinking  fund: 
Provided  further,  That  the  Treasurer  of  the  United  States  is  hereby 
authorized,  by  exchange  or  by  sale  and  reinvestment,  to  substitute 
bonds  of  the  District  of  Columbia  for  the  bonds  of  the  United  States, 
so  held,  when  he  shall  deem  it  to  be  to  the  interest  of  the  said  sinking 
fund  to  do  so.  (March  3, 1903.) 

SECTION  8. 

That  in  lieu  of  the  Board  of  Health  now  authorized  by  law,  the 
Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  appoint  a  physician 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  127 

as  Health  Officer,  whose  duty  it  shall  be,  under  the  direction  of  the 
said  Commissioners,  to  execute  and  enforce  all  laws  and  regulations 
relating  to  the  public  health  and  vital  statistics,  and  to  perform  all 
such  duties  as  may  be  assigned  to  him  by  said  commissioners;  and  the 
Board  of  Health  now  existing  shall,  from  the  date  of  the  appointment 
of  said  Health  Officer,  be  abolished. 

SECTION  9. 

1.  That  there  may  be  appointed  by  the  Commissioners  of  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia,  on  the,  recommendation  of  the  Health  Officer,  a 
reasonable  number  of  sanitary  inspectors  for  said  District,  not  exceed- 
ing six,  to  hold  such  appointment  at  any  one  time,  of  whom  two  may 
be  physicians,  and  one  shall  be  a  person  skilled  in  the  matters  of 
drainage  and  ventilation;  and  said  Commissioners  may  remove  any 
of  the  subordinates,  and  from  time  to  time  may  prescribe  the  duties  of 
each; 

2.  And  said  inspectors  shall  be  respectively  required  to  make,  at 
least  once  in  two  weeks,  a  report  to  said  Health  Officer,  in  writing, 
of  their  inspections,  which  shall  be  preserved  on  file; 

3.  And  said  Health  Officer  shall  report  in  writing  annually  to  said 
Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  so  much  oftener  as 
they  shall  require. 

SECTION  10. 

That  the  Commissioners  may  appoint,  on  the  like  recommendation 
of  the  Health  Officer,  a  reasonable  number  of  clerks,  but  no  greater 
number  shall  be  appointed,  and  no  more  persons  shall  be  employed 
under  said  Health  Officer,  than  the  public  interests  demand  and  the 
appropriation  shall  justify. 

SECTION  11. 

1.  That  the  salary  of  the  Health  Officer  shall  be  three  thousand  dol- 
lars per  annum  (now  $4,000); 

2.  And  the  salary  of  the  sanitary  inspectors  shall  not  exceed  the 
sum  of  one  thousand  two  hundred  dollars  per  annum  each; 

3.  And  the  salary  of  the  clerks  and  other  assistants  of  the  Health 
Officer  shall  not  exceed  in  the  aggregate  the  amount  of  seven  thousand 
dollars,  to  be  apportioned  as  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of 
Columbia  may  deem  best.     (This  has  been  much  increased  by  annual 
appropriations  by  Congress.) 

SECTION  12. 

1.  That  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  said  Commissioners  to  report  to 
Congress  at  the  next  session  succeeding  their  appointment  a  draft  of 
such  additional  laws  or  amendments  to  existing  laws  as  in  their  opin- 
ion are  necessary  for  the  harmonious  working  of  the  system  hereby 
74986—09 9 


128  GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

adopted,  and  for  the  effectual  and  proper  government  of  the  District 
of  Columbia; 

(The  required  compilation  was  submitted  to  Congress,  but  never  acted  upon  by 
that  body. )  By  act  of  March  2, 1889,  the  compilation  of  a  code  of  laws  was  provided 
for,  vol.  25,  p.  872.  W.  Stone  Abert  was  employed  to  do  the  work,  and  the  distribu- 
tion of  the  code  prepared  by  him  was  ordered  by  act  of  March  2, 1895,  vol.  28,  p.  759. 

2.  And  said  Commissioners  shall  annually  report  their  official  doings 
in  detail  to  Congress  on  or  before  the  first  Monday  of  December. 

SECTION  13. 

1.  That  there  shall  be  no  increase  of  the  present  amount  of  the  total 
indebtedness  of  the  District  of  Columbia; 

Three-sixty-five  bonds  limited  to  $15,000,000,  vol.  21,  p.  286. 

2.  And  any  officer  or  person  who  shall  knowingly  increase,  or  aid 
or  abet  in  increasing,  such  total  indebtedness,  except  to  the  amount 
of  the  two  hundred  thousand  dollars,  as  authorized  by  this  act,  shall 
be  deemed  guilty  of  a  high  misdemeanor,  and,  on  conviction  thereof, 
shall  be  punished  by  imprisonment  not  exceeding  ten  years,  and  by 
fine  not  exceeding  ten  thousand  dollars. 

SECTION  14. 

1.  That  the  term  "school  houses"  in  the  act  of  June  seventeenth, 
eighteen  hundred  and  seventy,  chapter  thirty,  was  intended  to  embrace 
all  collegiate  establishments  actually  used  for  educational  purposes, 
and  not  for  private  gain.     (See  Exemptions  of  real  property,  p.  147.) 

2.  And  that  all  taxes  heretofore  imposed  upon  such  establishmentsr 
in  the  District  of  Columbia,  since  the  date  of  said  act  are  hereby 
remitted,  and  where  the  same  or  any  part  thereof  has  been  paid,  the 
sum  so  paid  shall  be  refunded.     (Ib.) 

3.  But  if  any  portion  of  any  said  building,  house,  or  grounds  in 
terms  excepted  is  used  to  secure  a  rent  or  income,  or  for  any  business 
purpose,  such  portion  of  the  same,  or  a  sum  equal  in  value  to  such 
portion,  shall  be  taxed.     (Ib.) 

SECTION  15. 

That  all  laws  inconsistent  with  the  provisions  of  this  act  be,  and  the 
same  are  hereby,  repealed. 
Approved  June  11,  1878. 


APPENDIX  20. 

AN  ACT  for  laying  out  and  erecting  a  Town  on  Potomac  River,  above  the  [mouth 
of  Rock  Creek,  in  Frederick  County.     Passed  8th  June,  1751.] 

Whereas  several  inhabitants  of  Frederick  County,  by  their  humble 
petition  to  this  General  Assembly,  have  set  forth,  that  there  is  a  con- 
venient place  for  a  town  on  Potomac  River,  above  the  mouth  of  Hock 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  129 

Creek,  adjacent  to  the  inspection-house  in  the  County  aforesaid,  and 
prayed,  that  sixty  acres  of  land  may  be  there  laid  out  and  erected  into 
a  town: 

2.  Be  it  therefore  enacted,  by  the  right  honorable  the  Lord  Prietary, 
by  and  with  the  advice  and  consent  of  hi#  Lordship's  Governor,  and  the 
Upper  and  Lower  Houses  of  Assembly,  and  the  autlwrity  of  the  same, 

That  Captain  Henry  Wright  Crabb,  Master  John  Needham,  Master 
John  Clagett,  Master  James  Perrie,  Master  Samuel  Mag-ruder  the 
Third,  Master  Josias  Bealle,  and  Master  David  Lynn,  shall  be,  and 
are  hereby,  appointed  commissioners  for  Frederick  County  aforesaid, 
and  are  hereby  authorized  and  empowered,  as  well  to  buy  and  pur- 
chase sixty  acres,  part  of  the  tracts  of  land  belonging  to  Messrs.  George 
Gordon  and  George  Bell,  at  the  place  aforesaid,  where  it  shall  appear 
to  them,  or  the  major  part  of  them,  to  be  most  convenient  as  to  sur- 
vey and  lay  out,  or  cause  the  same  to  be  surveyed  and  laid  out,  in  the 
best  and  most  convenient  manner,  into  eighty  lots,  to  be  erected  into  a 
town. 

3.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  by  the  authority,  advice,  and  consent 
aforesaid,  That  the  commissioners  aforesaid  before  nominated  and 
appointed,  or  the  major  part  of  them,  are  hereby  empowered  and 
required,  at  some  time  by  them,  or  the  major  part  of  them,  to  be 
appointed,  before  the  first  day  of  October  next,  to  meet  together  on 
the  land  aforesaid,  or  at  some  other  place  near  and  convenient  thereto, 
and  then  and  there  treat  and  agree  (if  the  same  can  be  done  on  reason- 
able terms,)  with  the  owner  or  owners,  and  person  or  persons  interested 
in  the  same  sixty  acres  of  land,  for  the  purchase  thereof;  and  if  it 
shall  happen  that  the  said  owner  or  owners,  person  or  persons,  will 
not  agree  with  the  said  commissioners  for  such  rate  or  price  as  they 
the  said  commissioners,  or  the  major  part  of  them,  shall  think  reason- 
able, or  shall  refuse  to  make  sale  of  the  same,  or  that  through  non-age, 
coverture,  or  any  other  disability  or  impediment,  shall  be  disabled  to 
make  such  sale,  that  then  and  in  any  such  case  the  commissioners 
aforesaid,  or  the  major  part  of  them,  shall  and  are  hereby  empowered 
and  required,  to  issue  a  warrant,  under  their  hands  and  seals,  directed 
to  the  sheriff  or  coroner  of  Frederick  County  aforesaid  for  the  time 
being,  commanding  him  to  summon  and  impannel  a  jury  of  seventeen 
good  and  lawful  men,  freeholders  of  his  bailiwick,  to  be  and  appear  at 
the  day  and  place  in  such  warrant  to  be  mentioned,  which  sheriff  is 
hereby  required  and  obliged  to  execute  the  same;  and  that  jury,  being 
by  the  said  commissioners  charged  and  sworn,  shall,  upon  their  oath, 
inquire,  assess,  and  return,  what  damages  or  recompence  they  shall 
think  fit  to  be  paid  and  given  to  such  owner  or  owners,  person  or  per- 
sons, for  the  sixty  acres  of  land  aforesaid,  and  that  whatever  sum  or 
sums  of  money  such  jury  shall  so  assess  and  award,  shall  and  is  hereby 
declared  to  be  the  value  and  price  to  be  paid  to  such  owner  or  owners, 


130  GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

person  or  persons,  interested  in  the  sixty  acres  of  land  aforesaid;  but 
if  the  said  jury  shall  assess  and  value  the  said  land  at  a  less  price  than 
fifty  shillings  current  money  for  each  acre,  then  in  such  case  the  pur- 
chaser or  purchasers  of  such  land  shall  pay  such  further  sum,  over  and 
above  what  shall  be  the  valuation  of  the  said  jury,  as  shall  make  up  the 
full  sum  of  fifty  shillings  like  money  as  aforesaid  for  every  acre,  to  be 
paid  to  sucfi  proprietor  or  proprietors  as  aforesaid. 

4.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  by  the  authority,  advice,  and  consent 
aforesaid,  That  after  the  agreement  and  purchase  of  the  commission- 
ers aforesaid,  or  after  the  assessment  and  return  of  the  jury  aforesaid, 
as  the  case  shall  happen,  the  aforesaid  commissioners,  or  the  major 
part  of  them,  shall  and  are  hereby  required  to  cause  the  same  sixty 
acres  of  land  to  be  carefully  surveyed,  divided  and  laid  out,  by  the 
surveyor  of  the  county  aforesaid,  or  such  other  person  as  they,  or 
the  major  part  of  them,  shall  make  choice  of  and  appoint  for  that  pur- 
pose, as  near  as  conveniently  may  be,  into  eight}*  equal  lots,  allowing 
such  sufficient  space  or  quantity  thereof  for  streets,  lanes,  and  alleys, 
as  to  them  shall  seem  meet,  and  the  same  lots,  so  laid  out,  shall  num- 
ber with  numbers,  one,  two,  and  three,  and  so  to  eighty,  for  distin- 
guishing each  lot  from  the  other;  and  shall  cause  the  streets,  lanes, 
and  alleys,  to  be  named  and  distinguished  by  certain  names,  and  by 
good  sufficient  cedar  or  locust  posts,  to  be  set  up  as  a  boundary  to 
each  of  them. 

5.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  by  the  authority,  advice,  and  consent 
aforesaid,  That  the  commissioners,  or  the  major  part  of  them,  shall 
and  are  hereby  required  to  assess,  set,  and  ascertain  the  price  to  be 
paid  for  each  of  the  lots  aforesaid,  according  to  the  value,  conveniency, 
and  situation  thereof,  so  always  that  the  prices  of  all  the  said  lots, 
added  together,  may  amount  to  the  sum  b}T  them  agreed  for,  or  awarded 
by  the  jury,  for  the  aforesaid  sixty  acres  of  land,  and  no  more;  and 
the  aforesaid  sixty  acres  of  land  being   so  surveyed,  laid  out  and 
divided,  shall  be,  and  is  hereby,  erected  into  a  town,  and  shall  be 
called  by  the  name  of  Georgetown. 

6.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  owner  or  owners  of  the  afore- 
said land  shall  and  may  have  his,  her,  or  their  choice  of  any  of  the  two 
lots  aforesaid,  to  be  by  him,  her,  or  them,  retained  for  his,  her,  or  their 
proper  use,  provided  such  choice  shall  be  made  and  declared  to  the 
commissioners  aforesaid,  or  the  major  part  of  them,  within  ten  days 
after  the  survey  aforesaid  shall  be  made  and  completed,  and  not  other- 
wise; and  that  after  such  choice  is  made,  or  in  case  no  such  choice 
shall  be  made  within  the  ten  days  aforesaid,  then  after  the  expiration 
of  the  same  ten  days,  all  persons  whatsoever  shall  be  at  liberty  to  take 
up  and  purchase  the  same  lots,  paying  the  owner  or  owners  aforesaid, 
or  others  therein  interested,  the  price  or  value  thereof,  so  as  afore- 
said set  and  assessed  by  the  commissioners  aforesaid;  and  that  every 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF   COLUMBIA.  131 

person  who  shall  pay  as  aforesaid  the  price  of  the  lot  by  him  or  her 
so  taken  up  or  chosen,  or  shall  prove  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  said 
commissioners,  or  the  major  part  of  them,  that  he  or  she  had  tendered 
or  offered  to  pay  the  said  price  to  the  owner  or  owners  aforesaid,  and 
that  such  owner  had  refused  to  accept  or  receive  the  same,  and  an 
entry  of  such  payment  or  tender  and  refusal  being  made  according  to 
the  directions  hereafter  mentioned,  such  person  shall  and  is  hereby 
declared  to  be,  by  virtue  of  such  payment  or  tender  and  refusal,  and 
entry  thereof  made  as  aforesaid,  and  this  act,  fully  and  absolutely 
invested  and  seized  of  and  in  an  estate  of  inheritance  in  fee  simple  of 
and  in  such  lot,  to  him  or  her,  and  his  or  her  heirs  and  assigns  for- 
ever, without  &ny  deed,  conveyance,  or  other  transfer,  from  such 
owner  or  owners  for  the  same,  any  statute,  law,  usage,  or  custom,  to 
the  contrary  notwithstanding. 

7.  Provided  always,  That  it  shall  not  be  lawful  for  any  person  to 
take  up,  enjoy,  have,  or  possess,  more  than  one  of  the  same  lots,  within 
twelve  months  after  the  same  are  divided  and  laid  out  as  aforesaid; 
provided,  also,  that  all  and  ever}'  the  person  and  persons  aforesaid  so 
taking  up  the  lots  aforesaid,  or  any  of  them,  shall  and  are  hereby 
obliged  and  required,  within  two  years  after  they  shall  take  up  their 
respective  lots  as  aforesaid,  and  entry  thereof  made  as  aforesaid,  to 
erect,  build,  and  finish  thereon,  one  good  and  substantial  house  that 
shall  cover  four  hundred  square  feet  of  ground  at  the  least,  and  that 
it  be  made  in  every  respect  tenantable,  with  one  good  brick  or  stone 
chimney  thereto;  and  that  all  and  every  of  such  taker  or  takers  up, 
who  shall  neglect  to  build  as  aforesaid  on  their  respective  lots  afore- 
said, within  the  time  herein  for  that  purpose  limited  and  appointed, 
shall  lose  such,  and  the  estate  of  such  taker  up  so  neglecting  as  afore- 
said, shall  from  henceforth  cease  and  determine,  and  such  lot  or  lots 
so  neglected  to  be  built  upon  shall  be  subject  to  be  again  taken  up  by 
any  other  person  whatsoever,  which  second  taker  up,  paying  to  the 
commissioners  aforesaid  the  price  thereof  so  as  aforesaid  assessed,  and 
entry  thereof  made  as  aforesaid,  and  building  thereon  as  before  directed 
within  the  time  before  limited  after  such  second  taking  up,  shall  have 
the  like  estate  in  such  lot  or  lots  as  the  first  takers  up  who  shall  com- 
ply with  the  requisites  before  mentioned  are  herein  before  declared  to 
have,  and  so,  toties  quoties,  until  the  same  lots  shall  be  built  on  and 
improved  as  aforesaid. 

8.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  money  aforesaid  directed  to 
be  paid  to  the  commissioners  aforesaid,  for  the  lots  not  built  on  and 
improved  by  the  first  or  other  takers  up  within  the  time  herein  limited, 
shall  and  is  hereby  directed  to  be  applied  to  such  purposes,  for  the 
use  and  benefit  of  the  said  town,  as  to  the  said  commissioners,  or  the 
major  part  of  them,  shall  seem  meet. 


132  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

9.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  by  the  authority  aforesaid,  That  the 
surveyor  of  the  county  aforesaid,  or  any  other  person  whom  the  com- 
missioners aforesaid,  or  the  major  part  of  them,  shall  appoint  to  sur- 
vey and  lay  out  the  lands  aforesaid,  as  before  herein  directed,  shall 
make  out  a  fair  and  exact  plot  of  the  town  aforesaid,  and  survey 
thereof,  whereby  each  lot,  street,  lane,  and  alley,  may  appear  to  be 
well  distinguished  by  their  respective  numbers  and  names,  and  the  same 
plot,  with  a  full  and  plain  certificate  thereof,  shall  deliver  to  the  com- 
missioners as  aforesaid,  or  the  major  part  of  them,  to  be  entered  and 
reposited  as  hereafter  directed;  and  that  the  said  surveyor,  or  other 
person  appointed  as  aforesaid,  shall  have  and  receive  for  surveying 
and  laying  out  the  town  aforesaid,  and  making  the  plot  aforesaid,  the 
sum  of  one  thousand  pounds  of  tobacco,  to  be  paid  and  allowed  in  the 
county  levy,  and  no  more. 

10.  And  be  it  further1  enacted,  by  the  authority  aforesaid,  That  the 
commissioners  aforesaid,  or  the   major  part  of  them,  shall  and  are 
hereby  required  to  employ  some  sufficient  person  for  their  clerk,  and 
shall  administer  an  oath  to  such  clerk  for  the  due  performance  of  his 
office,  which  clerk  shall  and  is  hereby  obliged  to  find  and  provide  a 
good  well  bound  book,  for  registering  and  entering  the  proceedings 
of  the  said  commissioners  in  the  premises,  and  shall  duly  and  faith- 
fully register  and  enter  in  such  book  the  certificate  of  the  survey 
aforesaid,  the  prices  of  each  respective  lot,  the  name  of  the  owner,  and 
the  time  of  its  being  taken  up  and  paid  for,  or  of  the  tender  or  refusal 
as  aforesaid,  and  all  other  the  transactions  and  proceedings  of  the 
aforesaid  commissioners  whatsoever,  in  and  about  the  town  aforesaid; 
which  said  register,  together  with  the  plot  or  survey  of  the  same  town, 
shall  be  carefully  examined  and  inspected  by  the  aforesaid  commis- 
sioners, or  the  major  part  of  them,  and  after  the  same  is  completed, 
shall  be  lodged  with,  and  delivered  to,  the  clerk  of  the  same  county,  to 
be  by  him  kept  amongst  the  records  of  the  same  county. 

11.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  said  commissioners,  or  the 
major  part  of  them,  shall  limit  and  ascertain  what  fees  their  clerk 
aforesaid  shall  have  and  receive  for  the  several  services  by  him  to  be 
done  by  virtue  of  this  act,  to  be  paid  by  the  several  persons  taking  up 
the  lots  aforesaid. 

12.  And  whereas  it  may  be  advantageous  to  the  said  town  to  have 
fairs  kept  therein,  and  may  prove  an  encouragement  to  the  back  inhab- 
itants, and  others,  to  bring  commodities  there  to  sell  and  vend,  Be  it 
enacted,  That  it  shall  and  may  be  lawful  for  the  commissioners  of  the 
said  town  to  appoint  two  fairs  to  be  held  therein  annually,  the  one  fail- 
to  begin  on  the  second  Thursday  in  April  and  the  other  on  the  first  Thurs- 
day in  October,  annually;  which  said  fairs  shall  be  held  each  for  the 
space  of  three  days,  and  that  during  the  continuance  of  such  fair  or 
fairs,  all  persons  within  the  bounds  of  the  said  town  shall  be  privileged 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  133 

and  free  from  arrests,  except  for  felony  or  breach  of  the  peace,  and  all 
persons  coming  to  such  fair  or  fairs,  or  returning  therefrom,  shall  have 
the  like  privilege  of  one  day  before  the  fair,  and  one  day  on  their  return 
therefrom;  and  the  commissioners  for  the  said  town  are  hereby  empow- 
ered to  make  such  rules  and  orders  for  the  holding  the  said  fairs,  as  may 
tend  to  prevent  all  disorders  and  inconveniences  that  may  happen  in  the 
said  town,  and  such  as  may  tend  to  the  improvement  and  regulating  of 
the  said  town  in  general,  so  as  such  rules,  except  in  fair-time,  affect 
none  but  livers  in  the  said  town,  or  such  person  or  persons  as  shall  have 
a  lot  or  free-hold  therein,  any  law,  statute,  usage,  or  custom,  to  the 
contrary  notwithstanding;  provided,  always,  that  such  rules  and  orders 
be  not  inconsistent  with  the  laws  of  this  province,  nor  the  statutes  or 
customs  of  Great  Britain. 

13.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  commissioners  for  the  said 
town,  or  the  major  part  of  them,  from  time  to  time;  and  at  all  times, 
shall  have  power  to  remove  all  nuisances  that  they  shall  find  in  any  of 
the  streets  or  alleys  of  said  town;  provided  nevertheless,  that  this  act 
nor  any  thing  herein  contained,  shall  extend,  or  be  construed  to  extend, 
to  enable  or  capacitate  the  said  commissioners  or  inhabitants  of  the 
said  town  to  elect  or  choose  delegates  or  burgesses,  to  sit  in  the  gen- 
eral assembly  of  this  province  as  representatives  of  the  said  town;  But 
it  is  hereby  enacted,  That  the  commissioners  or  the  inhabitants  of  the 
said  town  shall  not  elect  or  choose  any  delegate  or  delegates,  burgess 
or  burgesses,  to  represent  the  said  town  in  any  general  assembly  of 
this  province. 

14.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  when  and  as  often  as  any  of  the 
commissioners  aforesaid  shall  die,  or  remove  from  the  county  afore- 
said, or  refuse  or  neglect  to  join  in  the  execution  of  this  act,  then,  and 
in  any  such  case,  the  major  part  of  the  other  commissioners  aforesaid 
shall  choose  others  in  the  place  of  such  who  shall  die,  refuse,  remove, 
or  neglect  as  aforesaid,  and  such  person  or  persons  so  chosen,  shall 
have  equal  power  to  act  as  the  other  commissioners  herein  mentioned. 

15.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  by  the  autliority  aforesaid,  That  all 
and  every  person  and  persons  taking  up  and  possessing  the  lots  afore- 
said, or  any  of  them,  shall  be,  and  are  Hereby,  obliged  to  pay  unto  the 
right  honorable  the  lord  proprietary,  his  heirs  or  successors,  the  yearly 
rent  of  one  penny  sterling  money  for  each  respective  lot  by  them  so 
taken  up  and  possessed,  to  be  paid  in  the  same  manner  as  his  land 
rents  in  this  province  now  are,  or  hereafter  shall  be  paid. 

16.  Saving  unto  his  most  sacred  majesty,  his  heirs  and  successors, 
the  right  honorable  the  lord  proprietary,  his  heirs  and  successors,  and 
to  all  bodies  politic  and  corporate,  and  all  persons  not  mentioned  in 
this  act,  their  several  and  respective  rights,  any  thing  in  this  act  to  the 
contrary  notwithstanding. 


134  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT   OF    COLUMBIA. 

APPENDIX  21. 

AN  ACT  for  an  addition  to  Georgetown,  in  Montgomery  County.     [Passed  26th 

December,  1783.] 

Whereas  Thomas  Beall,  son  of  George,  of  Montgomery  county,  by 
his  humble  petition  to  this  general  assembly  hath  set  forth,  that  he  is 
seized  and  possessed  of  part  of  a  tract  of  land,  called  and  known  by 
the  name  of  the  Rock  of  Dumbarton,  adjoining  Georgetown,  contain- 
ing sixty-one  acres,  which  he  is  desirous  of  annexing  to  said  town,  and 
therefore  prayed  that  a  law  might  pass  for  that  purpose;  and  it  appear- 
ing to  this  general  assembly,  that  to  extend  and  enlarge  the  limits  of 
said  town  will  greatly  contribute  to  promote  the  trade  and  commerce 
thereof: 

2.  Be  it  enacted  by  the  General  Assembly  of  'Maryland,  That  Messieurs 
John  Murdock,  Richard  Thompson,  William  Deakins,  Thomas  Rich- 
ardson, and  ChaiTes  Beatty,  be  commissioners  of  Georgetown,  or  the 
major  part  of  them,  be  authorized  and  required,  at  any  time  before 
the  first  day  of  August  next,  to  cause  the  aforesaid  parcel  of  land,  or 
such  part  thereof  as  they  may  think  necessary,  to  be  surveyed  and 
laid  out  into  lots,  streets,  lanes,  and  alleys,  at  the  proper  cost  and 
expense  of  the  said  Thomas  Beall,  in  such  manner  as  to  the  said  com- 
missioners, or  a  major  part  of  them,  shall  appear  convenient. 

3.  And  be  it  enacted,  That  the  commissioners  aforesaid,  or  a  major 
part  of  them,  shall,  on  or  before  the  said  first  day  of  August  next, 
cause  a  correct  and  accurate  survey  and  plot  to  be  made  of  the  said 
land,  and  of  all  the  lots,  streets,  lanes  and  alleys,  which  shall  be  laid 
out  in  virtue  of  this  act;  and  the  said  plot  shall  be  recorded  amongst  the 
records  of  the  said  county,  as  soon  as  conveniently  may  be  thereafter, 
there  to  remain  as  evidence  of  the  boundaries,  situation,  and  location 
of  the  said  lots,  and  of  the  streets,  lanes,  and  alleys;  which  said  streets, 
lanes,  and  alleys,  hereafter  to  be  laid  out  in  pursuance  of  this  act,  shall 
be  highways,  and  be  so  deemed  and  taken  to  all  intents  and  purposes 
whatsoever;. and  when  the  same  shall  be  done,  the  said  land,  so  sur- 
veyed  and  laid  out,  shall  be,  and  is  hereby  declared  to  be,  part  of 
Georgetown,  as  fully  and  amply,  as  if  originally  included  therein,  and 
shall  have  the  same  immunities  and  privileges  as  the  rest  of  the  said 
town  hath,  or  by  former  laws  ought  to  have;  saving  to  the  state  of 
Maryland,  and  all  bodies  politic  and  corporate,  and  all  persons  not 
mentioned  in  this  act,  their  several  and  respective  rights. 


APPENDIX  22. 

AN  ACT  for  an  addition   to  Georgetown,  in   Montgomery   County.     [Passed  22d 

January,  1785.] 

Whereas  Robert  Peters,  William  Deakins,  junior,  Charles  Beatty, 
and  John  Threlkeld,  of  Georgetown,  by  their  humble  petition  to  this 
general  assembly  have  set  forth,  that  they  have  agreed  to  lay  out,  as  an 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  135 

addition  to  Georgetown,  twenty  acres  and  eighteen  thirty  seconds  of 
an  acre  of  ground,  being  part  of  the  following  tracts  of  land,  to  wit: 
one  acre  and  twenty-six  thirty  seconds  of  an  acre,  part  of  a  tract  of 
land  called  Frogland,  the  property  of  the  aforesaid  Charles  Beatty, 
two  acres  and  one  thirty  second  of  an  acre,  part  of  a  tract  of  land 
called  Discovery,  the  property  of  the  aforesaid  Robert  Peters,  thirteen 
acres  and  twenty-nine  thirty  seconds  of  an  acre,  part  of  a  tract  of  land 
called  Conjuror's  Disappointment,  the  property  of  the  aforesaid  Wil- 
liam Deakins,  junior,  and  three  acres  twenty-six  thirty  seconds  of  an 
acre,  part  of  a  tract  of  lands  called  the  Resurvey  on  Salop,  the  prop- 
erty of  the  aforesaid  John  Threlkeld,  into  sixty -five  lots,  and  a  sufficient 
number  of  streets,  as  appears  by  the  plot  of  the  actual  survey  thereof, 
made  by  the  said  Francis  Deakins  on  the  first  day  of  September,  in 
the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand  seven  hundred  and  eighty-four; 
and  the  said  Robert  Peters,  John  Threlkeld,  William  Deakins,  jr.  and 
Charles  Beatt}r,  have  prayed  that  an  act  may  pass  confirming  the  same 
as  an  addition  to  Georgetown,  and  establishing  the  boundaries  thereof 
as  now  laid  down  by  the  survey  and  plot  aforesaid,  and  granting  to 
those  who  shall  be  proprietors  of  the  lots  fronting  on  the  north  side  of 
W^ater-street,  the  exclusive  right  to  the  ground  and  water  on  the  south 
side  thereof,  for  the  sole  purpose  of  making  wharves,  without  being 
allowed  to  erect  any  buildings  thereon,  and  vesting  a  power  in  the 
commissioners  of  Georgetown  to  improve,  by  wharves  for  the  public 
good,  the  land  and  water  fronting  Frederick,  Fayette,  and  Gay  streets; 
and  it  appearing  to  this  general  assembly,  that  extending  the  limits  of 
the  said  town  will  greatly  contribute  to  the  promotion  of  the  trade  and 
commerce  thereof,  and  be  of  general  utility;  therefore, 

2.  JSe  it  enacted  l>y  the  General  Assembly  of  Maryland,  That  the  said 
parts  of  the  tracts  of  land  herein  before  mentioned  and  described,  and 
laid  out  into  sixty -five  lots  and  a  sufficient  number  of  streets,  as  delin- 
eated on  the  plot  of  the  survey  thereof,  made  by  Francis  Deakins  on 
the  first  day  of  September,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand 
seven  hundred  and  eighty-four,  be,  and  the}7  are  hereby  declared  to 
be,  part  of  Georgetown  aforesaid,  and  shall  have,  possess,  be  entitled 
to,  and  enjoy,  to  all  and  every  intent  and  purpose,  all  the  immunities, 
privileges,  and  advantages,  which  do  or  shall  appertain  to  the  said 
town,  as  fully  and  amply,  in  every  respect,  as  if  the  same  had  been 
originally  part  thereof  and  included  therein;  and  the  said  lots  and 
streets,  surveyed  and  laid  out  in  manner  herein  before  set  forth,  shall 
be,  and  they  are  hereby,  established  and  confirmed,  according  to  the 
delineation  and  description  of  the  same  on  the  plot  of  the  survey 
thereof  by  Francis  Deakins,  herein  before  referred  to,  and  in  all  dis- 
putes and  controversies  which  may  or  shall  hereafter  happen  or  arise 
respecting  the  location  of  the  said  lots  and  streets,  the  said  plot,  the 
bounds  and  lines  therein  referred  to  being  proved,  shall  be  conclusive 


136  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

evidence  between  the  parties  at  whose  instance  this  act  is  passed,  and 
all  claiming1  under  them. 

3.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  proprietors  of  the  lots  fronting 
on  the  north  side  of  Water-street,  shall  have  and  enjoy  the  exclusive 
right  to  the  ground  and  water  on  the  south  side  of  their  respective 
lots,  for  the  sole  purpose  of  making  wharves,  but  they  shall  not  be 
allowed  to  erect  any  buildings  on  the  wharves  so  to  be  made  by  them. 

4.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  it  shall  and  may  be  lawful  for  the 
commissioners  of  Georgetown,  or  the  major  part  of  them,  and  they 
are  hereby  empowered,  to  make  and  erect  wharves  on  the  ground  and 
water  fronting  on  Frederick,  Faj^ette,  and  Gay-streets,  for  the  public 
good,  which  said  wharves  shall  be  for  the  use  and  convenience  of  all 
vessels  trading  to  the  said  town,  without  paying  wharfage  or  any  duty 
or  imposition  whatever,  for  using  the  same. 

5.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  for  the  safe  keeping  and  preser- 
vation of  the  said  plot  of  the  said  addition  to  Georgetown,  the  same 
shall  be  deposited  with  the  commissioners  of  the  said  town,  who  are 
hereby  directed  to  receive  the  said  plot,  and  take  care  thereof. 


APPENDIX  23. 

AN  ACT  to  incorporate  Georgetown,  in  Montgomery  County.     [Passed  25th  Decem- 
ber, 1789.] 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  General  Assembly  of  Maryland,  That  George- 
town, in  Montgomery  county,  shall  be,  and  hereby  is,  erected,  consti- 
tuted, and  made,  an  incorporate  town,  consisting  of  a  mayor,  recorder, 
six  aldermen,  and  ten  other  persons  to  be  common  councilmen  of  the 
said  town,  which  said  mayor,  recorder,  aldermen,  and  common  council- 
men,  shall  be  a  body  incorporate  and  one  community  forever,  in  right  and 
by  the  name  of  the  Mayor  Recorder,  Aldermen,  and  Common  Council,  of 
the  said  town,  and  shall  be  able  and  capable  to  sue  and  be  sued  at  law, 
and  to  act  and  execute,  do  and  perform,  as  a  body  incorporate,  which 
shall  have  succession  forever,  and  to  that  end  to  have  a  common  seal, 
and  the  same  to  change  and  alter  at  their  pleasure;  and  Robert  Peter, 
Esquire,  one  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  said  town,  shall  for  the  present 
be,  and  hereby  is  appointed  mayor  of  the  said  town  for  the  next  year, 
to  commence  on  the  fifth  day  of  January  next;  and  John  Mackall 
Gantt,  Esquire,  shall  be,  and  hereby  is,  appointed  recorder  of  the  said 
town;  and  Brooke  Beall,  Bernard  Oneale,  Thomas  Beall,  of  George, 
James  Maccubbin  Lingan,  John  Threlkeld,  and  John  Peter,  Esquires, 
inhabitants  of  the  said  town,  shall  be,  and  hereby  are,  appointed  alder- 
men of  the  said  town  so  long  as  they  shall  well  behave  themselves 
therein. 

2.  And  be  it  enacted,  That  all  free  men  above  twenty -one  years  of 
age,  and  having  visible  property  within  the  state  above  the  value  of 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  137 

thirty  pounds  current  money,  and  having  resided  in  the  said  town  one 
whole  year  next  before  the  first  day  of  January  next,  shall  have  a 
right  to  assemble  at  such  place  in  the  said  town  as  the  said  mayor, 
recorder,  and  aldermen,  or  any  three  or  more  of  them,  shall  appoint, 
and  when  assembled,  they  shall  proceed  to  elect,'  viva  voce,  ten  per- 
sons, residents  of  the  said  town  one  whole  year  next  before  the  said  first 
day  of  January  next,  above  twenty-one  years  of  age,  and  having  visi- 
ble property  within  the  state  above  the  value  of  one  hundred  pounds 
current  money,  to  be  common  council  of  the  said  town  for  so  long 
time  as  they  shall  well  behave  themselves,®  and  the  said  mayor, 
recorder  and  aldermen,  or  any  three  or  more  of  them,  shall  be  judges 
of  the  said  election,  and  the  ten  persons  who  shall  have  the  greatest 
number  of  legal  votes  upon  the  final  casting  up  of  the  polls,  shall  be 
declared  duly  elected. 

3.  And,  to  perpetuate  the  succession  of  the  said  mayor,  recorder, 
aldermen  and  common  council,  in  all  time  to  come,  Be  it  enacted,  That 
the  said  mayor,  recorder,  aldermen  and  common  council,  shall  assem- 
ble at  some  convenient  place  in  the  said  town  upon  the  first  Monday  in 
January,  seventeen  hundred  and  ninety -one,  and  on  the  same  day  for 
ever  thereafter,  and  shall  elect,  by  the  majority  of  votes  of  such  of  them 
as  shall  be  then  present,  one  other  of  the  aldermen  of  the  said  town  for 
the  time  being,  to  be  mayor  of  the  said  town  for  the  ensuing  year;  and 
upon  the  death  or  removal  of  the  said  mayor,  or  of  the  recorder  or  any 
aldermen  of  the  said  town,  and  within  one  year  after  any  such  event, 
such  of  the  said  persons  as  shall  be  alive,  or  the  major  part  of  them,  shall 
assemble  at  some  convenient  place  in  the  said  town,  and  elect,  by  a 
majority  of  votes,  some  other  person  or  persons  to  be  mayor,  recorder, 
alderman  or  aldermen,  of  the  said  town,  in  the  place  of  such  person  or 
persons,  so  deceased  or  removed  respectively,  as  the  case  shall  require, 
so  as  the  said  mayor,  so  to  be  elected,  be  at  the  time  of  such  election 
actually  one  of  the  aldermen  of  the  said  town,6  and  so  as  the  said 
recorder,  so  to  be  elected,  be  a  person  learned  in  the  law,  and  so  as 
the  said  alderman  and  aldermen,  so  to  be  elected,  be  actually,  at  the 
time  of  such  election,  of  the  common  council  of  the  said  town;  and  in 
case  of  the  election  of  any  of  the  common  council  to  be  an  alderman, 
the  vacancy  shall  be  filled  up  by  an  election,  at  such  time,  (not  less 
than  five  days  thereafter,)  as  the  said  mayor,  recorder,  and  aldermen, 
or  any  three  or  more  of  them,  shall  appoint,  by  the  residents  of  the 
said  town  qualified  as  hereinbefore  directed  and  required  in  the  first 
election  of  the  common  council  then  for  the  said  town. 

4.  And  be  it  enacted,  That  the  mayor,  recorder,  and  aldermen,  hereby 

«  By  1797,  ch.  56,  so  much  of  this  section  as  continues  the  powers  of  the  common 
council  during  good  behaviour,  is  repealed,  and  they  are  thereafter  to  be  elected  to 
serve  for  two  years.  The  elections  to  be  on  the  first  Monday  in  February. 

&  By  1797,  ch.  56,  section  5,  this  restriction  is  taken  off,  and  any  citizen  of  George- 
town may  be  chosen  Mayor. 


138  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

appointed,  or  hereafter  to  be  elected,  shall  be  justices  of  the  peace 
within  the  said  town  and  precincts  thereof,  having  first  taken  the  oath 
appointed  by  law  to  be  taken  by  justices  of  the  peace. 

5.  And  be  it  enacted,  That  the  said  mayor,  recorder,  and  aldermen, 
hereby  appointed,  or  hereafter  to  be  elected,  or  any  three  or  more  of 
them,  shall  have  within  the  said  town,  or  the  precincts  thereof,  full 
power  to  elect  a  sheriff,  and  to  appoint  constables  and  other  necessary 
officers  for  the  said  town. 

6.  j&.nd  l>e  it  enacted,  That  the  said  mayor,  recorder,  aldermen,  and 
common  council,  of  the  said  town,  for  the  time  being,  shall  have  full 
power  and  authority  to  make  such  by-laws  for  the  regulation  and  good 
government  of  the  said  town  and  precincts,  and  the  inhabitants  thereof, 
and  to  restrain  all  disorders  and  disturbances,  and  to  prevent  all  nui- 
sances, inconveniences,  and  annoyances,  within  the  said  town  and  its 
precincts,  and  other  matters,  exigencies,  and  things,  within  the  said 
town  and  precincts,  as  to  them,  or  a  major  part  of  them,  shall  seem 
meet  and  consonant  to  reason,  and  not  contrary  to  the  constitution  and 
laws  of  this  state;  and  the  said  by-laws  shall  be  observed,  kept,  and 
performed,  by  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  said  town  and  its  precincts, 
and  all  persons  trading  therein,  under  such  reasonable  penalties,  fines, 
and  forfeitures,  as  shall  be  imposed  by  the  said  by-laws,  not  exceeding 
seven  pounds  ten  shillings  current  money,  or  twenty  dollars;  the  said 
penalties,  fines,  or  forfeitures,  to  be  levied  by  distress  and  sale  of  the 
goods,  or  execution  of  the  person  so  offending,  and  applied  to  the  use 
of  the  said  town. 

7.  And,  to  defray  the  expenses  of  the  said  corporation,  Be  it  enacted, 
That  it  shall  be  lawful  for  the  said  mayor,  recorder,  aldermen,  and 
common  council,  of  the  said  town,  by  by-laws  made  for  the  purpose, 
to  impose  any  sum,  not  exceeding  two  shillings  and  six-pence  "•  current 
money  in  any  one  year,  on  every  hundred  pound  of  property  within 
the  said  town. 

8.  And  be  it  enacted,  That  the  mayor,  recorder,  and  aldermen,  of 
the  said  town,  or  any  five  or  more  of  them,  be  authorized  from  time 
to  time,  as  often  as  they  think  it  necessary,  to  cause  a  correct  survey 
of  the  said  town,  and  the  additions  thereto,  to  be  made,  and  to  estab- 
lish and  fix  permanent  boundaries  and  stones  at  such  places  as  they 
think  it  necessary,  with  proper  marks  and  devices  thereon,  to  ascer- 
tain and  perpetuate  the  true  lines  of  the  said  town  and  the  additions 

« Increased  to  seven  shillings  and  six-pence  by  1797,  ch.  56. 

By  1799,  ch.  85,  they  may  oblige  persons  licensed  as  ordinary-keepers  or  retailers 
within  the  corporation,  to  pay  a  sum  not  exceeding  five  dollars  to  the  corporation. 
The  mayor's  court  to  have  the  sole  power  of  granting  such  licences,  and  to  receive 
the  sums  due  therefor  to  the  state,  in  addition  to  those  imposed  by  them,  for  the  pay- 
ment of  which  the  mayor  is  to  give  bond,  with  security,  as  the  county  clerks  are 
directed  to  do. 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    D18TRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  139 

thereto;  and  the  said  mayor,  recorder,  and  aldermen,  or  any  five  or 
more  of  them,  be  authorized  from  time  to  time  to  survey  and  ascer- 
tain the  streets,  lanes,  and  alleys,  of  the  said  town  and  the  additions 
thereto,  and  to  declare  the  same,  and  to  adjudge  as  nuisances  any 
encroachments  thereon;  and  the  said  mayor,  recorder,  and  aldermen, 
or  any  five  or  more  of  them,  are  also  authorized  and  required,  on  the 
application  and  at  the  expense  of  the  proprietors,  or  the  guardians  of 
infant  proprietors,  of  any  lot  in  the  said  town  or  the  additions  thereto, 
to  survey,  alter,  amend,  or  lay  out  anew,  an}*  of  the  streets,  lanes, 
and  alleys,  running  through  the  ground  of  such  proprietors,  so  as  to 
make  the  streets,  lanes,  and  alleys,  throughout  every  part  of  the  said 
town  and  the  additions  thereto,  to  correspond  and  communicate  with 
each  other  as  near  as  may  be;  provided  that  an}*  street,  lane,  or  alley, 
when  altered,  amended,  or  made  anew,  shall  not  run  through  the 
ground  of  any  person  without  his  consent." 

9.  And  be  it  enacted,  That  the  mayor,  recorder,  and  aldermen,  or 
any  three  or  more  of  them,  shall  hold  a  court  in  the  said  town,  to  be 
called  the  Mayor's  Court,  and  in  court  they  may  make  proper  officers, 
and  settle  reasonable  fees,  not  exceeding  what  are  or  shall  be  allowed 
by  law  in  the  count}*  courts  of  this  state. 

10.  And  be  it  enacted.,  That  the  mayor,  recorder,  or  any  aldermen  of 
the  said  town,  shall  have  the  same  jurisdiction  as  to  debts  as  any  jus- 
tice of  the  peace  of  any  county  of  this  state  now  hath,  or  shall  here- 
after have  by  law,  and  an  appeal  shall  lie  in  the  same  manner  from 
their  judgment  to  the  mayor's  court,  as  from  the  decision  of  any  county 
justice  to  the  county  court,  and  such  appeal  shall  be  regulated,  prose- 
cuted, and  determined,  by  the  said  mayor's  court,  in  the  same  mode  as 
is  or  shall  be  directed  by  law  in  the  case  of  an  appeal  from  the  deter- 
mination of  a  single  justice  to  the  county  court. 

11.  And  be  it  enacted,  That  the  said  mayor's  court  shall  have  conqur- 
rent  jurisdiction  with  the  county  court  of  Montgomery  county  in  all 
criminal  cases,  except  such  as  affect  life  or  member,  if  such  crimes  or 
offences  be  committed  within  the  said  town,  or  the  precincts  thereof, 
by  any  inhabitant  thereof,  or  by  any  person  not  a  citizen  of  this  state; 
and  any  fine,  penalty,  or  forfeiture,  recovered  in  the  said  mayor's 
court,  shall  be  paid  and  applied  in  the  same  manner  as  if  recovered  in 
the  county  court  of  the  said  county;  and  the  mayor,  recorder,  and  any 
alderman,  shall  have  jurisdiction  touching  and  concerning  any  such 
crime,  to  arrest  and  bind  over  to  answer  therefor  in  the  said  mayor's 
court. 

12.  And  be  it  enacted,  That  the  said  mayor,  recorder,  aldermen,  and 
common  council,  or  the  major  part  of  them,  shall  have  power  to 

« By  1799,  ch.  85,  the  clerk  of  Montgomery  county  is  directed  to  deliver  to  the 
order  of  the  mayor  the  book  in  his  office  containing  the  plan  of  Georgetown,  to  be 
deposited  with  the  clerk  of  the  mayor's  court. 


140  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

appoint  an  inspector  or  inspectors  of  flour  for  the  said  town,  and  to 
fix  his  or  their  allowance;  provided  that  the  same  shall  not  exceed 
three-pence  current  money  per  barrel. 

13.  And  l)e  it  enacted,  That  all  that  part  of  Montgomery  county  lying 
within  one  quarter  of  a  mile  of  the  limits  of  the  said  town,  and  the 
additions  thereto,  and  all  that  space  of  water  of  Potomac  River  adjoin- 
ing the  said  town  on  all  the  shores  thereof,  and  used  as  the  harbour,  as 
far  unto  the  said  river  as  the  middle  thereof,  shall  be  considered  as  the 
precincts  of  the  said  town,  and  within  the  jurisdiction  of  the  mayor, 
recorder,  aldermen,  and  common  council  of  the  said  town,  and  subject 
to  their  by-laws  and  regulations,  and  within  the  jurisdiction  of  the 
mayor,  recorder,  .or  any  alderman  of  the  said  town,  as  before  men- 
tioned and  limited  by  this  act. 

14.  And  be  it  enacted,  That  all  property  belonging  to  the  commis- 
sioners or  trustees  of  Georgetown  shall  be,  and  the  same  is  hereby, 
transferred  and  vested  in  the  mayor,  recorder,  aldermen,  and  common 
council  of  the  said  town,  and  their  successors,  forever,  for  the  use  and 
benefit  of  the  said  town. 

Several  additional  powers  are  given  by  1797,  ch.  56. 


APPENDIX  24. 

MR.  MADISON'S  VIEWS  IN  THE  FEDERALIST  AS  TO  EXCLUSIVE  JURISDIC- 
TION BY  CONGRESS  AND  AS  TO  THE  SENTIMENT  RESPECTING  THE  EXER- 
CISE OF  SUFFRAGE  BY  THE  INHABITANTS  OF  THE  DISTRICT. 

[Report  on  Education  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  published  by  the  House  of  Representatives  January 

17,  1870,  page  175.] 

The  indispensable  necessity  of  complete  authority  at  the  seat  of 
government  carries  its  own  evidence  with  it.  It  is  a  power  exercised 
by  every  legislature  of  the  Union,  I  might  say  of  the  world,  by  virtue 
of  its  general  supremacy.  Without  it,  not  only  the  public  authority 
might  be  insulted  and  its  proceedings  be  interrupted  with  impunity, 
but  a  dependence  of  the  members  of  the  General  Government  on  the 
State  comprehending  the  seat  of  the  government  for  protection  in  the 
exercise  of  their  duty  might  bring  on  the  national  councils  an  imputa- 
tion of  awe  or  influence  equally  dishonorable  to  the  Government  and 
dissatisfactorj^  to  the  other  members  of  the  confederacy.  This  con- 
sideration has  the  more  weight  as  the  gradual  accumulation  of  public 
improvements  at  the  stationary  residence  of  the  government  would  be 
both  too  great  a  public  pledge  to  be  left  in  the  hands  of  a  single  State 
and  would  create  so  many  obstacles  to  a  removal  of  the  Government  as 
still  further  to  abridge  it3  necessary  independence.  The  extent  of  this 
Federal  district  is  sufficiently  circumscribed  to  satisfy  every  jealousy 
of  an  opposite  nature.  And  as  it  is  to  be  appropriated  to  this  use  with 
the  consent  of  the  State  ceding  it;  as  the  State  will  no  doubt  provide 
in  the  compact  for  the  rights  and  the  consent  of  the  citizens  inhabiting 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  141 

it;  as  the  inhabitants  will  find  sufficient  inducements  of  interest  to 
become  willing  parties  to  the  cession;  as  they  will  have  had  their  voice 
in  the  election  of  the  government  which  is  to  exercise  authority  over 
them;  as  a  municipal  legislature  for  local  purposes  derived  from  their 
own  suffrages  will  of  course  be  allowed  them;  and  as  the  authority  of 
the  legislature  of  the  State,  and  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  ceded  part 
of  it,  to  concur  in  the  cession  will  be  derived  from  the  whole  people  of 
the  State  in  their  adoption  of  the  Constitution,  every  imaginable  objec- 
tion seems  to  be  obviated. 


THE  PRESENT   FORM  OF  GOVERNMENT  FOR  THE   DISTRICT  OF  COLUMBIA. 

The  present  local  government  of  the  District  of  Columbia  is  a 
municipal  corporation  having  jurisdiction  coincident  with  the  terri- 
tory which  "was  ceded  by  the  State  of  Maryland  to  the  Congress  of 
the  United  States  for  the  permanent  seat  of  the  Government  of  the 
United  States"  (20  Stats.,  102),  and  which  had  been  subject  to  the  two 
municipal  governments  immediately  preceding  it. 

This  government  is  administered  by  a  board  of  three  Commissioners, 
having  in  general  equal  powers  and  duties.  Two  of  them,  who  must 
have  been  actual  residents  of  the  District  for  three  years  next  before 
their  appointment,  and  have  during  that  period  claimed  residence 
nowhere  else,  are  appointed  from  civil  life  by  the  President  of  the 
United  States,  and  confirmed  by  the  Senate  of  the  United  States,  for 
a  term  of  three  years  each,  and  until  their  successors  are  appointed 
and  qualified.  Attorney-General  Devens  rendered  an  opinion  July  7, 
1880,  that  the  term  of  office  of  any  Commissioner  appointed  from  civil 
life,  whose  predecessor  shall  or  shall  not  have  served  a  full  term  of  three 
years,  is  three  years  from  the  date  of  his  appointment  and  until  his 
successor  shall  be  appointed  and  qualified,  and  not  for  the  unexpired 
part  of  such  predecessor's  term.  The  other  Commissioner  is  detailed 
from  time  to  time  by  the  President  of  the  United  States  from  the 
Engineer  Corps  of  the  United  States  Army,  and  shall  not  be  required 
to  perform  any  other  duty.  (20  Stats. ,  103.)  The  act  of  June  11, 1878, 
prescribes  that  the  Commissioner  so  detailed  shall  have  lineal  rank 
above  that  of  captain;  but  this  requirement  is  qualified  by  the  joint 
resolution  approved  December  24,  1890  (26  Stats.,  1113),  which  pro 
vides  that  he —  . 

may,  in  the  discretion  of  the  President  of  the  United  States,  be  detailed  from  among 
the  captains  or  officers  of  higher  grade  having  served  at  least  fifteen  years  in  the 
Corps  of  Engineers  of  the  Army  of  the  United  States. 

Three  officers  of  the  same  corps,  junior  to  said  Commissioner,  may 
be  detailed  to  assist  him  by  the  President  of  the  United  States.  (28 
Stats.,  246.) 

The  senior  officer  of  the  Corps  of  Engineers  of  the  Army  who  shall 
for  the  time  being  be  detailed  to  act  as  assistant  (and  in  case  of  his 


142  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF   COLUMBIA. 

absence  from  the  District  or  disability,  the  junior  officer  so  detailed) 
shall,  in  the  event  of  the  absence  from  the  District  or  disability  of  the 
Commissioner  who  shall  for  the  time  being  be  detailed  from  the  Corps 
of  Engineers,  perform  all  the  duties  imposed  by  law  upon  said  Com- 
missioner. (26  Stats.,  1113.) 

It  has  been  the  unvarying  practice  of  the  Presidents  to  appoint  one 
of  the  civil  Commissioners  from  each  of  the  two  most  prominent 
national  political  parties,  but  there  is  no  statutory  provision  on  the 
subject. 

SALARY   AND   BOND   OF   COMMISSIONERS. 

The  salary  of  each  of  the  Commissioners  is  $5,000  per  annum.  The 
two  Commissioners  appointed  from  civil  life  give  bond  to  the  United 
States  in  the  sum  of  $50,000  each.  (20  State. ,  103 ;  21  Stats.,  460.)  No 
bond  is  required  of  the  Commissioner  detailed  from  the  Corps  of 
Engineers. 

OATH    OF   OFFICE    OF    COMMISSIONERS. 

Each  of  said  Commissioners  shall,  before  entering  upon  the  dis- 
charge of  his  duties,  take  an  oath  or  affirmation  to  support  the  Con- 
stitution of  the  United  States  and  to  faithfully  discharge  the  duties 
imposed  upon  him  by  law.  (20  Stats.,  103.) 

PRESIDENT   OF   THE    BOARD. 

One  of  said  Commissioners  shall  be  chosen  president  of  the  Board 
of  Commissioners  at  their  first  meeting,  and  annually  and  whenever  a 
vacancy  shall  occur  thereafter  (20  Stats.,  103).  (See  list  of  Commis- 
sioners and  presidents  of  the  board  (pp.  210,  211). 

QUORUM. 

Any  two  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  sitting 
as  a  board,  shall  constitute  a  quorum  for  the  transaction  of  business 
(26  Stats.,  1113). 

SUBDIVISION    OF   DUTIES. 

For  the  purpose  of  facilitating  the  administration  of  the  various 
municipal  affairs,  the  Commissioners  have  arranged  their  duties  in  sub- 
stantially three  groups,  and  have  assigned  a  several  one  of  these  groups 
to  the  immediate  supervision  of  each  Commissioner,  whose  recommen- 
dations on  the  matters  so  allotted  to  him  are  ultimately  acted  upon  by 
himself  and  his  colleagues  as  a  board. 

EX    OFFICIO   DUTIES   OF   COMMISSIONERS. 

One  of  the  Commissioners  is  ex  officio  a  member  of  the  board  of 
trustees  of  the  Reform  School  for  Boys  (21  Stats.,  156),  and  one  an 
ex  officio  trustee  of  the  Columbia  Hospital  for  Women  and  Lying-in 
Asylum  (ib.,  157). 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  143 

POWER   OF   APPOINTMENT   AND   REMOVAL. 

The  Commissioners  are  authorized  to  abolish  any  office,  to  consoli- 
date two  or  more  offices,  reduce  the  number  of  employees,  remove 
from  office,  and  make  appointment  to  any  office  under  them  authorized 
by  law. 

GENERAL   DUTIES   OF   COMMISSIONERS. 

The  Commissioners  are  in  a  general  way  vested  with  jurisdiction 
covering  all  the  ordinary  features  of  municipal  government. 

Although  Congress  is  vested  with  exclusive  legislative  authority  in 
the  District  of  Columbia,  it  has  by  sundry  statutes  empowered  the 
Commissioners  to  make  building  regulations;  plumbing  regulations: 
to  make  and  enforce  all  such  reasonable  and  usual  police  regulations 
as  they  may  deem  necessary  for  the  protection  of  lives,  limbs,  health, 
comfort,  and  quiet  of  all  persons,  and  the  protection  of  all  property 
within  the  District,  and  other  regulations  of  a  municipal  nature. 
The  Commissioners  have  from  time  to  time-  exercised  the  duty  so 
devolved  upon  them. 

COMMISSIONERS   NOT   TO    INCUR   UNAUTHORIZED    OBLIGATIONS. 

In  the  exercise  of  their  duties,  power,  and  authority  they  must 
make  no  contract  nor  incur  any  obligation  other  than  such  contracts 
and  obligations  as  shall  be  approved  by  Congress  (20  Stats.,  103). 

ESTIMATES. 

The  Commissioners  are  required  to  submit  to  the  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury  of  the  United  States,  on  or  before  October  15  of  each  year, 
an  estimate  of  the  amount  necessary  to  defray  the  expenses  of  the  gov- 
ernment of  the  District  of  Columbia  for  the  next  fiscal  year,  which  the 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury  shall  transmit  to  Congress  with  a  statement 
as  to  the  extent  to  which  said  estimates  have  his  approval.  (20  Stats., 
104;  23  Stats.,  254;  31  Stats.,  1009.) 

SOURCES   OF   REVENUE. 

The  organic  act  declares  that  "To  the  extent  to  which  Congress 
shall  approve  of  said  estimates,  Congress  shall  appropriate  the  amount 
of  50  per  cent  thereof;  and  the  remaining  50  per  cent  of  such  approved 
estimates  shall  be  levied  and  assessed  upon  the  taxable  property  and 
privileges  in  said  District  other  than  the  property  of  the  United  States 
and  of  the  District  of  Columbia."  f20  Stats. ,  104.") 

The  several  specific  sources  of  revenue  other  than  the  amount  derived 
from  the  United  States,  as  its  proportionate  share  of  the  expenses  of 
the  District  government,  and  including  special  assessments,  are  sub- 
stantially as  follows: 

METHODS  OF  TAXATION  IN  THE  DISTRICT  OK  COLUMBIA. 

ASSESSMENT  OFFICIALS. 

Assessments  of  both  real  and  personal  property  are  made  by  the 
assessor  and  a  board  of  five  (act  of  July  1,  1902,  and  28  Stat. ,  282) 
74986—09 10 


144  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

assistant  assessors,  three  of  said  board  being  designated  by  the  assessor 
to  act  as  the  assessors  of  real  estate  and  as  the  excise  board,  and  the 
two  other  members  of  said  board  designated  by  the  assessor  to  com- 
pose the  board  of  personal-tax  appraisers.  All  five  members  of  said 
board  of  assistant  assessors,  together  with  the  assessor,  chairman,  con- 
stitute the  board  of  equalization  and  review  of  real-estate  assessments 
and  also  the  board  of  personal-tax  appeals.  The  assessor,  however, 
acts  as  chairman  ex  officio  of  the  several  boards  aforesaid.  The 
assessor  and  the  members  of  the  board  of  assistant  assessors  are 
appointed  by  the  Commissioners,  but  may  not  be  removed  except  for 
inefficiency,  neglect  of  duty,  or  malfeasance  in  office.  The  members 
of  the  board  of  assistant  assessors  are  required  to  perform  such  other 
official  duties  as  the  assessor  may  from  time  to  time  direct.  (28  Stat.  > 
282;  32  Stat.,  pt.  1,  617.) 

The  salary  of  the  assessor  is  $3,500  per  annum  and  that  of  each  of 
the  members  of  the  board  of  assistant  assessors  $3,000  per  annum  (28 
Stat.,  282,  and  act  of  July  1,  1902).  The  assessor  is  required  to  fur- 
nish bond  in  the  sum  of  $10,000  (30  Stat.,  666),  and  each  member  of 
the  board  must,  before  entering  upon  his  duties,  take  an  oath  to  dili- 
gently, faithfully,  and  impartially  perform  the  duties  imposed  upon 
him  (28  Stat,  282). 

ISSUE   OF    LIQUOR    LICENSES. 

No  place  of  business  shall  be  licensed  for  the  selling  of  intoxicating 
beverages,  by  wholesale  or  retail,  within  four  hundred  feet  of  a  public 
school,  private  school,  or  house  of  religious  worship,  except  (as  the 
Commissioners  are  advised  by  the  corporation  counsel)  in  case  of 
hotels  having  twenty-five  rooms  for  guests  and  duly  incorporated 
clubs.  A  further  condition  precedent  to  the  issue  of  a  retail  dealer's 
license  is  that  a  majority  of  the  owners  of  and  residents  on  the  side 
of  the  square  where  it  is  proposed  to  locate  such  place  of  business,  and 
of  the  confronting  side  of  the  opposite  square,  must  first  consent 
thereto  in  writing,  and  the  officer  in  charge  of  the  police  precinct  in 
which  the  proposed  place  of  business  is  to  be  shall  have  certified  that 
the  signatures  to  such  consent  are  genuine  and  that  a  majority  of  the 
residents  have  given  their  consent. 

ASSESSMENT    OF    REAL    PROPERTY. 

Real  estate  is  assessed  triennially  (28  Stat.,  282)  at  not  less  than 
two-thirds  of  its  true  value  (32  Stat.,  pt.  1,  616),  by  the  board  of  three 
assistant  assessors  (28  Stat.,  282).  This  assessment  must  be  completed 
on  or  before  the  first  Monday  of  January  in  each  third  year  and  return 
of  the  same  made  to  the  assessor,  together  with  all  maps,  field  books, 
surveys,  plats,  and  all  notes  and  memoranda  concerning  said  assess- 
ment. The  assessment  must  be  made  by  said  assessors  from  actual 
view  and  from  the  best  sources  of  information  obtainable. 

The  assessment  then  passes  to  the  board  of  equalization  and  review, 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT   OF    COLUMBIA.  145 

composed  of  the  assessor,  chairman,  and  five  (32  Stat.,  pt.  1,  617,  and 
28  Stat.,  284)  assistant  assessors.  This  board  convenes  on  the  first 
Monday  of  January  (28  Stat.,  284),  and  continues  in  session  until 
review  of  the  assessment  is  completed,  which  must  be,  as  nearly  as 
practicable,  by  the  first  Monday  of  June  in  each  third  year.  Public 
notice  of  the  time  and  place  of  such  meeting  must  be  given  by  publi- 
cation for  two  successive  days  in  two  daily  newspapers  in  the  District 
of  Columbia.  The  members  of  the  said  board  are  authorized  to 
administer  oaths  or  affirmations,  to  summon,  through  the  officers  of 
the  Metropolitan  police  force,  any  person  to  appear  before  said  board 
to  testify  touching  matters  pertaining  to  the  assessment,  such  witnesses 
being  allowed  the  same  fees  as  paid  in  civil  actions  before  the  supreme 
court  of  the  District  of  Columbia. 

Any  person  summoned  and  examined,  as  aforesaid,  and  knowingly 
making  false  oath  or  affirmation  is  considered  guilty  of  perjury,  and 
upon  conviction  thereof  may  be  punished  according  to  laws  for  pun- 
ishment of  perjury.  (28  Stat.,  285.) 

Any  three  members  of  said  board  shall  constitute  a  quorum  for  busi- 
ness, and  in  the  absence  of  the  assessor  a  temporary  chairman  may  be 
selected.  It  is  the  duty  of  the  board  of  equalization  and  review  to 
hear  appeals  from  property  owners,  and  to  fairly  and  impartially 
equalize,  as  a  basis  for  taxation,  the  values  placed  upon  real  property 
by  the  board  of  assistant  assessors.  In  reaching  their  determination 
they  may  raise  the  valuations  of  such  tracts  or  lots  as,  in  their  opinion, 
may  have  been  returned  below  their  value,  and  reduce  the  valuations 
of  such  as  they  may  believe  to  have  been  returned  above  their  value, 
to  such  sums  as,  in  their  opinion,  may  be  the  value  thereof.  Upon 
completion  of  the  duties  of  the  board  of  equalization  and  review  the 
assessment  must  be  approved  by  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  after  which  approval  it  becomes  the  basis  of  taxation  for 
the  ensuing  three  years.  (28  Stat.,  284.) 

Annually,  on  or  about  the  1st  of  July,  the  board  of  assistant  assessors 
is  required  to  make  a  list  of  all  real  property  which  shall  have  become 
subject  to  taxation,  and  which  is  not  then  on  the  tax  list,  and  to  fix 
the  valuation  thereof  according  to  the  rules  prescribed  for  assessing 
real  estate.  They  are  also  required  to  make  a  return  of  all  new  struc- 
tures erected  or  roofed,  and  additions  to,  or  improvements  of,  old 
structures  of  over  $500  in  value,  which  shall  not  have  been  theretofore 
assessed,  specifying  the  tract  or  lot  on  which  each  of  such  structures 
shall  have  been  erected  and  the  value  of  such  structure,  and  they  shall 
add  such  valuation  to  the  assessment  made  of  such  tract  or  lot.  When 
improvements  on  any  tract  or  lot  become  damaged  or  destroyed,  the 
board  is  required  to  reduce  the  assessment  on  such  property  to  the 
extent  of  such  damage. 

Appeals  from  these  yearly  assessments  are  heard  by  the  board  of 


146  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

equalization  and  review  between  the  first  and  third  Mondays  of  July 
of  each  year. 

If  the  board  of  assistant  assessors  shall  ascertain  that  any  real  prop- 
erty has  been  omitted  from  assessment  for  any  previous  year  or  years, 
or  has  been  so  assessed  that  the  assessment  was  void,  they  must  at 
once  reassess  such  propert}-  for  each  year  of  such  omission  and  report 
the  same,  through  the  assessor,  to  the  collector  of  taxes,  who  is  required 
to  at  once  proceed  to  collect  the  taxes  so  in  arrears  as  other  taxes  are 
collected.  However,  no  property  which  has  escaped  taxation  is  liable 
for  a  period  of  more  than  three  years  prior  to  assessment,  except  in 
the  case  of  property  involved  in  litigation.  (28  Stat.,  284.) 

Whenever  a  subdivision  of  any  real  propert}7  is  made  and  recorded 
with  the  surveyor  of  the  District  the  board  of  assistant  assessors  must 
reassess  the  property  so  subdivided,  and  the  tax  on  such  reassessment 
is  due  and  payable  at  the  semiannual  payment  of  taxes  next  ensuing. 
(32  Stat,  pt.  1,  616.) 


RATE   OF   TAXATION. 


The  rate  of  annual  taxation  on  real  and  personal  property  is  uni- 
formly, throughout  the  District  of  Columbia,  li  per  cent.  (Ib.,  616, 
618.) 

BOOKS   OF    ASSESSMENT. 

The  books  of  assessment  are  prepared  by  the  assessor  before  the 
1st  day  of  November  in  each  year,  and  upon  completion  thereof  the 
assessor  is  required  to  make  a  statement  showing  the  total  amount  of 
the  assessment  of  both  real  and  personal  property  and  the  total  amount 
of  taxes  to  be  collected  under  said  assessments;  which  statement  must 
be  receipted  b}7  the  collector  of  taxes,  in  triplicate,  and  said  collector 
is  held  responsible,  und^r  his  bond,  for  all  such  taxes,  except  such  as 
he  may  not  be  able  to  collect  after  fully  complying  with  the  require- 
ments of  law.  The  original  receipt  of  said  assessment  and  taxes  must 
be  forwarded  by  the  assessor  to  the  First  Comptroller  of  the  Treasury, 
the  duplicate  to  the  auditor  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  the  trip- 
licate is  to  be  retained  by  the  collector,  who  shall  give  newspaper 
notice  that  he  is  ready  to  receive  taxes.  (20  Stat.,  105;  27  Stat.,  13.) 

All  real  property  must  be  assessed  in  the  name  of  the  owner  or 
trustee  or  trustees  of  the  owner  thereof.  All  undivided  real  property 
of  a  deceased  person  may  be  assessed  in  the  name  of  such  deceased 
person  until  the  same  is  divided  according  to  law,  or  otherwise  passed 
into  the  possession  of  some  other  person  or  persons,  and  all  real  prop- 
erty the  ownership  of  which  is  unknown  shall  be  assessed  "Owner 
unknown."  (28  Stat.,  282.) 


TAX    BILLS. 


All  general  tax  bills  must  be  prepared  under  the  direction  of  the 
assessor.  (27  Stat.,  13.)  By  order  of  the  Commissioners,  all  special 
assessment  and  water-main  tax  bills  are  also  prepared  under  his 
supervision. 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  147 

DATE   OF    PAYMENT   OF   TAXES. 

Taxes  on  realty  are  levied  by  fiscal  years  and  are  payable  one-half 
in  November,  at  the  option  of  the  owner,  no  penalty  accruing  for  fail- 
ure to  pay  said  half  until  the  whole  tax  becomes  due  in  the  following 
May.  For  failure  to  pay  before  the  1st  of  June,  1  per  cent  per  month 
penalty  is  charged.  (Act  of  February  14,  1902.) 

PUBLIC  INSPECTION  OF  RECORDS. 

The  assessor  is  required  to  have  the  records  of  his  office  open  to  the 
inspection  of  the  public,  free  of  charge,  at  such  time  or  times  as  the 
public  interest  will  permit.  (Act  of  July  1.  1902.) 


EXEMPTIONS    OF    REAL    PROPERTY. 


The  act  of  Congress  approved  March  3.  1877,  made  the  following 
provisions  as  to  exemptions  from  taxation: 

That  the  property  exempt  from  taxation  under  this  act  shall  be  the  following 
and  no  other,  namely,  first,  the  Corcoran  art  building,  free  public  library  buildings, 
churches,  the  Soldiers'  Home,  and  grounds  actually  occupied  by  such  buildings; 
secondly,  houses  for  the  reformation  of  offenders,  almshouses,  buildings  belonging 
to  institutions  of  purely  public  charity  conducted  without  charge  to  inmates,  profit, 
or  income;  cemeteries  dedicated  and  used  solely  for  burial  purposes  and  without 
private  income  or  profit;  but  if  any  portion  of  any  such  building,  house,  grounds, 
or  cemeteries  so  in  terms  excepted  is  larger  than  is  absolutely  required  and  actually 
used  for  its  legitimate  purpose  and  none  other,  or  is  used  to  secure  a  rent  or  income, 
or  for  any  business  purpose,  such  portion  of  the  same,  or  a  sum  equal  in  value  to 
such  portion,  shall  be  taxed  against  the  owner  of  said  building  or  grounds  (19  Stat., 
399,  402. )  (See  also  act  of  June  17,  1870,  16  Stat.,  153. ) 

This  has  been  modified  by  the  act  of  July  1,  1902,  which  provides: 

That  hereafter  property  used  for  educational  purposes  that  is  not  used  for  private 
gain  shall  be  exempt  from  taxation,  and  all  other  property  used  for  educational  pur- 
posesshall  be  assessed  and  taxed  as  other  pro  pert}'  is  assessed  and  taxed.  ( 32  Stat. ,  616. ) 

And  by  District  appropriation  law  of  March  3,  1903,  as  follows: 
And  hereafter  no  property  except  that  of  the  United  States  or  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia and  property  owned  by  foreign  governments  for  legation  purposes  shall  be  exempt 
from  assessments  for  improvements.     (32  Stat.,  pt.  1,  961.) 

Orphan  asylums,  etc.,  exempt  from  water  tax  (30  Stat.,  543);  C.  and  O.  Canal  (4 
Stat.,  796,  802);  Oak  Hill  Cemetery  (9  Stat.,  775,  sec.  10). 

SALES    FOR    DELINQUENT   TAXES.  .    : 

The  assessor  is  required  to  annually  prepare  a  list  of  taxes  on  real 
property  in  arrears  on  the  1st  day  of  July.  The  Commissioners  must 
fix  a  date  of  sale  and  publish  the  list  with  notice  of  sale  in  a  pamphlet, 
of  which  not  less  than  2,000  copies  must  be  printed  for  distribution  to 
taxpayers  applying  therefor.  The  Commissioners  must  also  give 
notice  by  advertisement,  twice  a  week  for  three  successive  weeks, 
beginning  on  the  third  Monday  of  February  of  each  year,  in  three 
daily  newspapers  published  in  the  District,  that  the  pamphlet  has  been 
printed  and  that  a  copy  thereof  will  be  given  to  any  taxpayer  apply- 
ing therefor  at  the  office  of  the  collector  of  taxes.  In  said  pamphlet 
a  description  of  property  sufficient  to  identify  the  same  is  considered 
a  proper  description.  The  expenses  of  advertising  and  printing  of 


148  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

pamphlet  are  paid  by  a  charge  of  50  cents  for  each  lot  or  piece  of 
property  advertised. 

If  the  taxes  due,  together  with  penalties  and  costs,  shall  not  have 
been  paid  prior  to  date  of  sale,  the  property  must  be  sold  by  the  col- 
lector of  taxes,  under  direction  of  the  Commissioners,  at  public  auction 
in  the  collector's  office,  said  sale  commencing  at  least  three  weeks  after 
first  publication  of  said  notice  and  continuing  each  day  (Sundays  and 
holidays  excepted)  until  all  said  delinquent  property  is  sold. 

The  collector  must  require  from  every  purchaser  a  deposit  sufficient, 
in  his  judgment,  to  guarantee  a  full  and  final  settlement  for  such  pur 
chase.  Every  purchaser  other  than  the  District  of  Columbia  shall 
pay  the  full  amount  of  his  bid,  including  surplus,  if  any,  to  the  col- 
lector within  five  days  after  last  day  of  sale,  and  if  such  payment  is 
not  made  within  time  specified,  deposit  of  person  so  failing  to  pay 
shall  be  forfeited  to  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  collector  shall  issue 
certificate  of  sale  for  such  property  to  the  next  highest  bidder;  and  if 
the  latter  shall  not  pay  the  amount  of  his  bid  within  two  days  there- 
after, the  sales  upon  which  the  bids  were  made  shall  be  set  aside  by  the 
Commissioners,  and  the  property  shall  be  considered  as  having  been 
bid  in  in  the  name  of  the  District  of  Columbia. 

In  case  no  other  person  bids,  or  bids  are  insufficient  to  cover  amount 
of  taxes  due,  together  with  penalties  and  costs,  the  collector  shall  bid 
the  amount  due,  together  with  penalties  and  costs,  and  purchase  it  for 
the  District;  but  property  so  bid  in  for  the  District  of  Columbia  is  not 
thereafter  exempt  from  taxation.  Failure  on  the  part  of  the  District 
to  enforce  the  liens  thus  acquired  does  not  release  property  from  any 
tax  that  may  be  due  the  District. 

Immediately  after  close  of  sale,  upon  payment  of  purchase  money, 
the  collector  must  issue  to  all  purchasers  certificates  of  sale,  and  if  the 
property  is  not  redeemed  from  said  sale  within  two  years  from  last  day 
thereof  by  payment  to  the  collector  for  the  use  of  the  holder  of  the 
certificate  the  amount  for  which  property  was  sold,  exclusive  of  sur- 
plus, and  12  per  cent  per  annum  thereon,  a  deed  must  be  given  by  the 
Commissioners  to  the  holder  of  the  certificate,  which  deed  is  admitted 
to  be  prima  facie  evidence  of  a  fee-simple  title.  No  deed,  however, 
can  be  issued  until  all  taxes  and  assessments  due  on  the  property  are 
paid,  including  taxes  for  which  the  District  purchased  property  at  tax 
sale.  Nor  must  said  deeds  be  executed  if  it  shall  be  discovered  that 
sales  were  for  any  cause  invalid  and  ineffectual  to  pass  title  to  prop- 
erty sold,  in  which  case  the  Commissioners  must  cancel  the  sale  and 
refund  the  purchase  money  with  6  per  cent  per  annum  interest, 
together  with  the  surplus,  if  any. 

If  any  conveyance  made  by  the  Commissioners  of  property  sold  for 
taxes  shall  be  set  aside  by  the  court,  the  party  in  whose  favor  the 
decree  is  rendered  must  pay  to  the  party  holding  the  conveyance  the 
amount  paid  for  such  taxes  and  conveyances,  with  interest  at  6  per 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  149 

cent  per  annum.  When  any  tax  sale  is  for  any  reason  set  aside  or 
canceled,  the  property  embraced  in  said  sale  may  be  readvertised  and 
sold  at  the  tax  sale  next  ensuing. 

Minors  and  other  persons  under  legal  disability  are  allowed  one  year 
after  attaining  age  or  after  removal  of  such  disability  to  redeem  prop- 
erty sold  or  bid  off  by  the  collector  of  taxes  by  payment  of  the  amount 
of  purchase  money  with  8  per  cent  per  annum  interest,  together  with 
all  taxes  and  assessments  that  have  been  paid  thereon  by  the  purchaser 
between  the  date  of  sale  and  date  of  redemption  with  8  per  cent  per 
annum  interest  on  the  amount  of  such  taxes  and  assessments. 

Property  sold  as  aforesaid  is  redeemable  from  said  sale  at  any  time 
within  two  years  after  last  day  of  sale  by  payment  to  the  collector  of 
taxes,  for  the  use  of  the  holder  of  the  certificate,  the  sum  mentioned 
therein,  exclusive  of  surplus,  with  interest  thereon  at  12  per  cent  per 
annum  after  date  of  such  certificate. 


DISPOSAL    OF    SURPLUS. 


Any  surplus  remaining  after  collection  of  tax,  penalty,  etc.,  must  be 
deposited  by  the  collector  to  the  credit  of  the  surplus  fund,  to  be  paid 
to  owner  or  owners  of  property  in  the  same  manner  as  other  payments 
made  by  the  District,  but  if  any  property  sold  as  aforesaid  is  redeemed 
from  sale  witliin  the  time  allowed,  the  surplus  collected  at  time  of  sale 
must  be  paid  to  holder  of  certificate. 

LIST    OF    SALES   TO    BE    FILED    WITH    RECORDER    OF    DEEDS. 

The  collector  is  required,  within  twenty  days  (exclusive  of  Sundays 
and  holidays)  after  last  day  of  sale,  to  file  with  the  recorder  of  deeds 
a  written  report  stating  property  sold  other  than  that  sold  to  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia,  to  whom  it  was  assessed,  taxes  due,  to  whom  sold, 
amount  paid,  date  of  sale,  cost  of  sale,  and  surplus,  if  any. 

SALE   OF   PROPERTY    BID    IN    BY    THE    DISTRICT. 

If  property  bid  in  for  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  not  have  been 
redeemed  within  two  years  from  last  day  of  sale  by  payment  of  taxes, 
penalties,  and  costs  due  at  time  of  sale,  and  8  per  cent  per  annum 
thereon,  tho  Commissioners  may  sell  said  property  at  public  or  private 
sale,  and  issue  to  the  purchaser  a  deed,  which  shall  have  the  same  force 
and  effect  as  the  deed  provided  for  property  sold  at  regular  annual  sale. 

The  collector  of  taxes  may,  at  any  time  before  expiration  of  time 
allowed  for  redemption  of  property  bid  in  for  District  of  Columbia, 
issue  certificates  of  taxes  to  any  person  applying  therefor,  and  if  prop- 
erty is  not  redeemed  within  two  years  from  date  of  said  certificate,  by 
payment  of  the  face  of  the  certificate,  exclusive  of  surplus  and  12  per 
cent  per  annum  thereon,  the  Commissioners  shall  issue  a  deed  to  the 
holder  of  the  certificate,  which  deed  shall  have  the  same  force  and 
effect  as  deeds  given  for  property  sold  at  regular  annual  tax  sale. 
Deeds,  however,  shall  not  be  issued,  either  in  case  of  property  bid  in  for 


150  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

the  District  which  has  not  been  redeemed  within  two  years,  or  property 
bid  in  for  the  District  upon  which  certificates  of  sale  are  issued  within 
redemption  period,  unless  all  taxes  and  assessments  due  on  the  prop- 
erty are  paid;  nor  if  the  sale  to  the  District  was  for  any  cause  invalid 
or  ineffectual  to  give  title  to  the  property.  (Act  July  1,  1902.) 

LIST    OF    PROPERTY    SOLD    FOR   TAXES    OPEN    TO    PUBLIC    INSPECTION. 

1  The  assessor  is  required  to  prepare  and  keep  in  his  office,  for  public 
inspection,  a  list  of  all  real  estate  sold  for  nonpayment  of  general  or 
special  taxes  or  assessments,  said  list  to  show  the  date  of  sale,  for  what 
taxes  sold,  in  whose  name  assessed  at  time  of  sale,  amount  of  sale, 
when  and  to  whom  conveyed,  if  deeded,  or  if  redeemed  from  sale,  the 
date  of  redemption.  (27  Stat.,  37.) 


COLLECTION    AND    DEPOSIT    OF   REVENUES. 


It  is  the  duty  of  the  collector  of  taxes  for  the  District  of  Columbia 
to  collect  all  revenues  of  the  District  and  deposit  the  amount  collected 
daily  with  the  Treasurer  of  the  United  States,  and  he  is  held  responsi- 
ble under  his  bond  for  all  taxes  except  such  as  he  may  not  be  able  to 
collect  after  fully  complying  with  the  requirements  of  law.  (20  Stat., 
461;  27  Stat.,  13.) 

Section  2  of  the  District  appropriation  law  of  March  3,  1883,  pre- 
scribes— 

That  hereafter  all  moneys  appropriated  for  the  expenses  of  the  government  of  the 
District  of  Columbia,  together  with  all  revenues  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  from 
taxes  or  otherwise,  shall  be  deposited  in  the  Treasury  of  the  United  States,  as  required 
by  the  provisions  of  section  4  of  an  act  approved  June  11,  1878.  (22  Stat.,  470.) 

The  collector  of  taxes  shall  at  the  close  of  each  day's  collections,  make  an  aggregate 
of  the  amount  so  collected,  and  furnish  to  the  auditor  a  copy  thereof.  (L.  A.  243.) 


CERTIFIED    STATEMENTS    OF    TAXES. 


The  assessor  is  required  to  furnish  certified  statements,  over  his  hand 
and  official  seal,  of  all  taxes  and  assessments,  general  and  special,  that 
may  be  due  and  unpaid  at  the  time  of  making  said  certificates.  For 
each  certificate  a  fee  of  50  cents  must  be  paid  to  the  collector  of  taxes. 

When  such  certificate  is  issued,  it  is  a  bar  to  the  collection  from  any 
subsequent  purchaser  of  any  tax  or  assessment  omitted  from,  and 
which  may  be  a  lien  upon  the  real  estate  mentioned  in,  said  certificate; 
but  such  omission  does  not  affect  the  liability  of  the  person  who  owned 
the  property  at  the  time  such  tax  was  assessed.  (27  Stat.,  37.) 

REASSESSMENTS. 

The  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are  authorized  and 
directed,  in  cases  where  general  taxes  or  assessments  for  local  improve- 
ments are  quashed,  set  aside,  or  declared  void  by  the  supreme  court  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  by  reason  of  imperfect  or  erroneous  descrip- 
tion of  the  property  against  which  same  was  levied,  by  reason  of  such 
tax  or  assessment  not  having  been  authenticated  by  proper  officer,  by 
reason  of  a  defective  return  of  service  of  notice,  or  for  any  technical 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  151 

reason  other  than  the  right  of  the  public  authorities  to  levy  the  tax  or 
assessment,  to  reassess  the  property  in  question,  with  power  to  collect 
such  reassessment.  Said  reassessment,  however,  must  be  made 
within  ninety  days  after  judgment  or  decree  of  court  quashing  or 
setting  aside  such  taxes  or  assessments.  Any  amount  theretofore 
paid  on  the  assessment  which  has  been  declared  void  shall  be  credited 
upon  the  reassessment.  (29  Stat.,  98,  and  30  Stat.,  721.) 

DESIGNATION   OF   PARCELS   OF   LAND. 

Acts  of  March  3,  1899  (30  Stat.,  1376),  and  February  23,  1905  (33 
Stat.,  pt.  1,  737),  prescribe  a  system  for  numbering  each  lot,  part  of 
lot,  or  parcel  of  land  in  the  District  of  Columbia.  The  object  of  these 
acts  was  to  procure  uniformity  in  this  respect  and  for  assessment  pur- 
poses. 

TRANSCRIPTS    OF   DEEDS,  WILLS,  ETC. 

The  Commissioners  shall  cause  an  employee  of  the  surveyor's  office 
to  make  daily  transcripts  of  all  deeds  of  conveyance,  wills,  condemna- 
tions, decrees,  and  other  instruments  of  proceedings  by  which  bound- 
aries are  changed;  for  which  purpose  such  employee  of  the  surveyor's 
office  shall  at  all  times  during  business  hours  have  full  and  free  access 
to  all  records  of  the  recorder  of  deeds,  register  of  wills,  clerk  of  the 
supreme  court,  marshal,  and  other  officials;  and  the  surveyor  shall 
daily  furnish  to  the  assessor  a  copy  of  such  transcript,  from  which  a 
duplicate  set  of  taxation  and  assessment  plat  books  shall  be  main- 
tained by  the  said  assessor:  Provided,  That  the  current  series  of  taxa- 
tion and  assessment  plat  books  in  the  surveyor's  office  shall  be  the 
standard  book  of  reference  for  all  purposes  of  assessment  and  taxation 
by  all  departments  of  the  government  of  the  District  of  Columbia. 

Provision  for  transcripts  of  wills  and  deeds  in  relation  to  change  of 
boundaries  in  the  city  of  Washington  is  made  in  the  act  of  March  3, 
1899.  (30  Stat.,  1377.) 

SPECIAL  ASSESSMENTS. 
» 

ASSESSMENT   AND     PERMIT    WORK. 

The  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are  authorized, 
whenever  in  their  judgment  the  same  is  necessary  for  the  public 
health,  safety,  or  comfort,  or  when  application  is  made  therefor, 
accompanied  by  a  deposit  equal  to  one-half  the  estimated  cost  of 
the  work,  to  improve  and  repair  alleys  and  sidewalks,  and  to  con- 
struct sidewalks  of  such  form  and  materials  as  they  may  determine, 
and  to  pay  the  total  cost  of  said  work  from  appropriations  for  assess- 
ment and  permit  work.  (28  Stat.,  247,  248.) 

Notice  must  be  given  by  advertisement,  twice  a  week  for  two  weeks, 
in  some  newspaper  published  in  the  city  of  Washington,  of  any  such 
assessment  work  proposed  to  be  done,  designating  the  location  and 


152  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

kind  of  work,  specifying  the  kind  of  materials  to  be  used,  the  esti- 
mated cost,  and  fixing  a  time  and  place  when  and  where  property 
owners  about  to  be  assessed  may  appear  and  present  objections 
thereto  and  for  hearing  thereof.  One-half  of  the  total  cost  of  such 
improvements,  including  expenses  of  assessment,  must  be  charged 
against  and  become  a  lien  upon  abutting  property,  and  assessment 
therefor  must  be  levied  pro  rata  according  to  the  linear  frontage  of 
such  property. 

Notices  of  the  levying  of  such  assessments  must  be  served  upon 
each  lot  owner,  if  he  or  she  be  a  resident  of  the  District  and  his  or  her 
residence  known;  and  if  he  or  she  be  a  nonresident  of  the  District,  or 
his  or  her  residence  unknown,  such  notice  must  be  served  upon  his  or 
her  agent  or  tenant,  as  the  case  may  be;,  and  if  there  be  no  agent  or 
tenant  known  to  the  Commissioners,  then  they  shall  give  notice  of  such 
assessment  by  advertisement,  twice  a  week  for  two  weeks,  in  some 
newspaper  published  in  the  District.  Service  of  such  notice  where 
owner  or  his  or  her  tenant  or  agent  resides  in  the  District  must  be 
either  personal  or  by  leaving  the  same  with  some  person  of  suitable 
age,  at  the  residence  or  place  of  business  of  such  agent,  owner,  or 
tenant,  and  return  of  such  service  must  be  made  in  writing  and  filed 
in  the  office  of  the  Commissioners.  The  costs  of  publication  of  notice 
and  service  of  notices  are  paid  out  of  the  appropriation  for  assessment 
and  permit  work. 

One-half  of  the  cost  of  such  work  must  be  paid  to  the  collector  of 
taxes  as  follows:  One-third  within  sixty  days  after  service  of  notice 
of  assessment,  without  interest;  one-third  within  one  year,  and  the 
remainder  within  two  years  from  date  of  service  of  notice,  interest 
being  charged  at  8  per  cent  per  annum  from  date  of  service  of  notice 
on  amounts  unpaid  at  expiration  of  sixty  days  after  service  of  notice 
of  assessment. 

Any  property  upon  which  such  assessment  and  accrued  interest 
thereon,  or  any  part  thereof,  remains  unpaid  at  expiration  of  two  years 
from  date  of  service  of  notice  of  assessment,  shall  be  subject  to  sale 
therefor  under  the  same  conditions  and  penalties  imposed  for  non- 
payment of  general  taxes.  If  any  property,  assessed  as  heretofore 
explained,  shall  become  liable  to  sale  for  any  other  assessment  or  tax 
whatever,  then  the  assessments  levied  as  hereinbefore  explained 
become  immediately  due  and  payable,  and  the  property  against 
which  they  are  levied  may  be  sold  therefor,  together  with  the  accrued 
interest  thereon  and  the  costs  of  advertising  to  date  of  such  sale. 

Property  owners  who  request  improvements  under  the  permit 
system  must  deposit,  in  advance,  with  the  collector  of  taxes,  an 
amount  equal  to  one-half  the  estimated  cost  of  such  improvements, 
and  in  such  cases  it  is  not  necessary  to  give  notices,  as  hereinbefore 
stated. 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  153 

All  moneys  received  by  the  collector  of  taxes  for  work  done  upon 
request  of  property  owners  must  be  deposited  by  him  in  the  United 
States  Treasury  to  the  credit  of  the  permit  fund. 

Upon  completion  of  the  work  done,  as  aforesaid,  at  request  of 
property  owners,  the  Commissioners  must  repay  to  the  then  current 
appropriation  for  assessment  and  permit  work,  out  of  the  permit  fund, 
a  sum  equivalent  to  one-half  the  cost  of  the  work,  and  shall  return  to 
the  depositors  from  the  said  fund,  when  application  is  made  therefor, 
any  surplus  that  may  remain  over  and  above  one-half  the  cost  of  the 
work.  (28  Stat.,  247  and  248.) 

OPENING,  WIDENING,   ETC.,  OF    MINOR    STREETS    AND    ALLEYS. 

SEC.  1608.  The  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are 
authorized  to  open,  extend,  widen,  or  straighten  alleys  and  minor 
streets  in  the  District  of  Columbia  under  the  following  conditions: 
First,  upon  the  petition  of  the  owners  of  more  than  one-half  of  the 
real  estate  in  the  square  or  block  in  which  such  alley  or  minor  street 
is  sought  to  be  opened,  extended,  widened,  or  straightened,  accom- 
panied by  a  plat  showing  the  opening,  extension,  widening,  or 
straightening  proposed;  second,  when  the  Commissioners  deem  that 
the  public  interests  require  such  opening,  extension,  widening,  or 
straightening;  third,  when  the  health  officer  of  said  District  certifies 
to  the  necessity  for  the  same  on  the  grounds  of  public  health:  Pro- 
vided. That  a  minor  street  shall  be  of  a  width  of  not  less  than  40  feet 
nor  more  than  60  feet  and  shall  run  through  a  square  or  block  from 
one  street  to  another.  (Code  of  Law,  District  of  Columbia.) 

SEC.  491  n.  In  case  any  of  the  owners  of  land  heretofore  or  here- 
after condemned  for  public  use  are  under  disability  or  can  not  be 
found,  or  neglect  or  refuse  to  receive  the  money  awarded  to  them; 
or  in  case  the  record  is  imperfect  or  the  title  to  the  property  is  in 
dispute  or  uncertain,  the  money  due  the  owners  of  the  property 
for  damages  for  land  taken  may  be  deposited  in  the  registry  of  the 
supreme  court  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  for  the  use  of  the  rightful 
owners  without  cost  or  expense  to  said  District;  and  thereupon  the 
title  to  the  land  condemned  shall  become  vested  in  the  District  of 
Columbia.  (Approved  Dec.  18,  1908.) 

NEW    CURB    AND    SIDEWALKS    ON    STREETS    BEING   IMPROVED. 

When  new  sidewalks  or  curbing  are  hereafter  required  to  be  laid  on 
streets  being  improved,  one-half  the  total  cost  shall  be  assessed 
against  abutting  property,  in  like  manner  and  under  the  law  govern- 
ing in  the  case  of  assessment  and  permit  work:  Provided,  That 
abutting  property  shall  not  be  liable  to  such  assessment  when  side- 
walk and  curbing  have  been  laid  by  the  District  authorities  in  front 
of  the  same  under  the  assessment  and  permit  system  within  two 
years  prior  to  such  assessment.  (Act  Aug.  7,  1894,  28  Stats.,  250.) 


154  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

EXTENSION    OF   STREETS    AND    AVENUES. 

In  the  case  of  extensions  of  streets  and  avenues  provided  for  by  law, 
the  Commissioners  are  authorized  to  petition  the  supreme  court  of  the 
District  of  Columbia  for  the  condemnation  of  land  necessary  for  such 
extension,  said  court  appointing  a  jury  for  that  purpose,  and  the 
jury  making  return  of  benefits  and  damages  to  abutting  property. 
Assessments  are  then  levied  for  benefits  to  abutting  property,  such 
assessments  being  payable  in  five  equal  annual  installments,  with 
interest  at  4  per  cent  per  annum  after  sixty  days  from  confirmation  of 
verdict  of  jury;  but  in  cases  of  awards  for  damages  only  that  part  of 
said  award  is  paid  by  the  District  as  may  be  in  excess  of  assessment 
for  benefits,  and  there  is  credited  on  assessment  for  benefits  the  amount 
of  any  award  for  damages  not  in  excess  of  said  assessment. 

USEC.  491g.  That  of  the  amount  found  to  be  due  and  awarded  as 
damages  for  and  in  respect  of  the  land  to  be  condemned  for  said  open- 
ing, extension,  widening,  or  straightening,  plus  the  costs  and  expenses 
of  the  proceeding,  such  amount  shall  be  assessed  by  the  jury  as  bene- 
fits, and  to  the  extent  of  such  benefits  against  the  lots,  pieces,  or  par- 
cels of  land  on  each  side  of  the  street,  avenue,  road,  or  highway  to  be 
opened,  extended,  widened,  or  straightened,  and  against  any  and  all 
other  lots,  pieces,  or  parcels  of  land  which  the  jury  may  find  will  be 
benefited  by  the  opening,  extension,  widening,  or  straightening,  as  the 
jury  may  find  said  lots,  pieces,  or  parcels  of  land  will  be  benefited;  and 
in  determining  the  amounts  to  be  assessed  against  said  lots,  pieces,  or 
parcels  of  land  the  jury  shall  take  into  consideration  the  respective 
situations  and  topographical  conditions  of  said  lots,  pieces,  or  parcels 
of  land,  and  the  benefits  and  advantages  they  may  severally  receive 
from  the  opening,  extension,  widening,  or  straightening  of  the  street, 
avenue,  road,  or  highway.  And  where  part  of  any  lot,  piece,  parcel, 
or  tract  of  land  has  been  dedicated  for  the  opening,  extension,  widen- 
ing, or  straightening  of  the  street,  avenue,  road,  or  highway,  the  jury, 
in  determining  whether  the  remainder  of  said  lot,  piece,  parcel,  or  tract 
is  to  be  assessed  for  benefits,  and  the  amount  of  benefits,  if  any,  to  be 
assessed  thereon,  shall  also  take  into  consideration  the  fact  of  such 
dedication  and  the  value  of  the  land  so  dedicated.  If  the  total  amount 
of  the  damages  awarded  by  the  jury  and  the  costs  and  expenses  of  the 
proceeding  be  in  excess  of  the  total  amount  of  the  assessments  for  bene- 
fits, such  excess  shall  be  borne  and  paid  by  the  District  of  Columbia." 

Approved,  February  25,  1907. 


ASSESSMENTS    FOR    WATER    MAINS. 


The  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  have  all  the 
powers  and  be  subject  to  all  the  duties  and  limitations  provided  in 
chapter  8  of  the  Revised  Statutes  of  the  United  States  relating  to  the 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  155 

District  of  Columbia,  excepting  such  powers  and  duties  as  belong  to 
the  Chief  of  Engineers.     (21  Stats.,  9.) 

Water-main  taxes  and  water  rents  shall  be  uniform  in  said  District. 
(Ib.) 

WATER    MAINS    AND    SERVICE    SEWERS. 

AN  ACT  Authorizing  the  laying  of  water  mains  and  service  sewers  in  the  District 
of  Columbia,  the  levying  of  assessments  therefor,  and  for  other  purposes. 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the  United 
States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  Commissioners  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  be,  and  they  are  hereby,  authorized  and 
directed,  whenever  in  their  judgment  the  same  may  be  necessary  for 
the  public  safety,  health,  comfort,  or  convenience,  to  construct  water 
mains  and  service  sewers  in  any  street,  avenue,  road,  or  alley  in  the 
District  of  Columbia;  and  the  assessor  of  said  District  shall  levy 
assessments  for  the  same  against  abutting  property  in  the  amount  and 
manner  hereinafter  prescribed. 

SEC.  2.  That  for  laying  or  constructing  water  mains  in  the  District 
of  Columbia  assessments  shall  be  levied  at  the  rate  of  one  dollar  and 
twenty-five  cents  per  linear  front  foot  against  all  lots  or  land  abutting 
upon  that  part  of  the  street,  avenue,  road,  or  alley  in  which  a  water 
main  shall  be  laid,  and  that  for  laying  or  constructing  service  sewers 
in  the  District  of  Columbia  assessments  shall  be  levied  at  the  rate  of 
one  dollar  per  linear  front  foot  against  all  lots  or  land  abutting  upon 
that  part  of  the  street,  avenue,  road,  or  alley  in  which  a  sewer  shall 
be  laid :  Provided,  That  assessments  for  water  mains  and  service  sew- 
ers in  the  case  of  lots  or  parcels  of  land  not  more  than  one  hundred 
feet  in  depth  shall  be  levied  upon  the  fronts  or  rears  of  such  lots  or 
parcels  of  land,  and  not  upon  both  the  fronts  and  rears  of  such  lots  or 
parcels  of  land;  but  lots  or  parcels  of  land  more  than  one  hundred 
feet  in  depth,  except  corner  lots,  shall  be  assessed  upon  both  their 
fronts  and  rears  when  water  mains  or  service  sewers  are  laid  abutting 
the  same :  Provided,  That  corner  lots  shall  be  assessed  for  water  mains 
and  service  sewers  only  on  their  short  fronts  with  a  depth  of  not 
exceeding  one  hundred  feet;  any  excess  of  the  other  front  over  one 
hundred  feet  shall  be  subject  to  assessment,  as  hereinbefore  provided: 
Provided,  That  the  areas  of  all  lots  or  parcels  of  land  which  have 
been  assessed  for  water  mains  by  the  square  foot  under  any  previous 
•act  of  Congress,  or  of  the  late  legislative  assembly  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  shall  not  be  again  assessed  for  water  mains :  Provided,  That 
assessments  for  water  mains  or  service  sewers  shall  not  be  levied  under 
this  act  against  lots  or  parcels  of  land  not  more  than  one  hundred 
feet  in  depth  which  have  theretofore  been  assessed  by  the  linear  front 
feet  by  authority  of  any  act  of  Congress  or  of  the  late  corporation 
of  Georgetown,  and  in  any  assessment  or  reassessment  levied  under 


156  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

the  provisions  of  this  act  credit  shall  be  allowed  for  any  amount  which 
may  have  been  heretofore  paid  upon  any  water  main  or  service  sewer 
assessment  levied  against  the  same  portion  of  the  area  of  any  lot  or 
parcel  of  land :  Provided  further,  That  when  the  Commissioners  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  shall  deem  it  advantageous  to  lay  water 
mains  or  service  sewers  on  each  side  of  any  street,  avenue,  road,  or 
alley  assessments  shall  be  levied  at  the  rate,  within  the  time  and  in  the 
manner  in  this  section  provided  for,  against  the  lots  abutting  the  side 
of  the  street,  avenue,  road,  or  alley  in  which  the  water  main  or  service 
sewer  is  laid. 

SEC.  3.  That  the  assessor  of  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  give 
notices  as  herein  provided  of  the  levying  of  assessments  for  water 
mains  and  service  sewers.  Assessments  shall  be  levied  within  sixty 
days  after  the  completion  of  the  main  or  service  sewer,  and  the  owner 
or  owners  affected  by  such  assessments  shall  be  notified  that  the  same 
have  been  levied  by  a  notice  which  shall  be  served  upon  the  owner  of 
the  lot  or  parcel  of  land  if  he  or  she  be  a  resident  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  and  his  or  her  residence  be  known.  If  the  owner  be  a  non- 
resident or  his  or  her  residence  be  unknown,  the  notice  shall  be 
served  on  his  or  her  agent  or  tenant.  The  service  of  such  notice, 
where  the  owner  or  his  or  her  agent  or  tenant  resides  in  the  District 
of  Columbia,  shall  be  personal  or  by  leaving  the  same  with  some  per- 
son of  suitable  age,  either  a  member  of  his  family  or  in  his  employ, 
at  the  residence  or  place  of  business  of  such  owner,  agent,  or  tenant; 
and  return  of  such  service,  stating  the  manner  thereof,  shall  be  made 
in  writing  under  oath  and  filed  in  the  office  of  the  assessor  of  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia.  If  there  be  no  agent  or  tenant  known  to  said 
assessor,  and  the  owner  or  owners  be  not  residents  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  or  if  the  owner  be  a  resident  of  the  District  of  Columbia 
and  can  not  be  found  therein,  and  no  person  of  suitable  age  as  afore- 
said can  be  found  at  his  or  her  residence  or  place  of  business,  notice 
shall  be  given  by  advertisement  once  a  week  for  three  successive 
weeks  in  some  daily  newspaper  published  in  said  District,  and  in  said 
publication  of  said  notice  each  several  piece  of  property  shall  be 
described  in  a  separate  paragraph,  and  the  cost  of  such  advertisement 
shall  be  added  to  the  amount  of  said  assessment  and  collected  in  the 
same  manner  that  said  assessment  is  collected. 

SEC.  4.  That  assessments  for  water  mains  and  service  sewers  shall 
be  payable  in  three  equal  installments,  the  first  of  which  shall  be  due 
and  payable  without  interest  within  thirty  days  from  date  of  service 
of  notice  or  of  the  last  publication  of  notice  as  the  case  may  be,  the 
second  within  one  year,  and  the  third  within  two  years  from  the  date 
of  assessment,  and  interest  at  the  rate  of  six  per  centum  per  annum 
shall  be  charged  on  all  amounts  which  shall  remain  unpaid  at  the 
expiration  of  thirty  days  from  the  date  of  service  of  notice  or  last 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  157 

publication  as  the  case  may  be;  but  the  owner  of  the  property  assessed 
may,  at  his  option,  at  any  time  after  the  levying  of  such  assessment, 
pay  the  same  in  full;  and  the  discount  heretofore  allowed  for  pay- 
ment of  assessments  for  water  mains  within  thirty  days  from  date  of 
service  of  notice  of  assessments  shall  not  be  allowed  hereafter:  Pro- 
vided, That  if  any  installment  of  any  assessment  for  water  main  or 
service  sewer  levied  under  the  provisions  of  this  act  shall  not  be  paid 
when  due  and  payable  the  property  against  which  said  assessment  was 
levied  may  be  sold  for  said  delinquent  installment  at  the  next  ensuing 
annual  tax  sale  in  the  same  manner  and  under  the  same  conditions  as 
property  sold  for  delinquent  general  taxes,  if  said  installment  shall 
not  have  been  paid  prior  to  said  sale. 

SEC.  5.  That  property  in  the  county  of  Washington,  not  subdivided 
into  blocks  or  lots,  or  both,  shall  not  be  assessed  for  water  mains  or 
service  sewers  until  subdivided :  Provided,  That  where  houses  are  built 
on  any  unsubdivided  land  and  connection  is  made  with  a  water  main  or 
service  sewer,  assessment  shall  be  made  as  herein  provided  for  in  the 
case  of  subdivided  property  by  assessing  a  frontage  of  fifty  feet  on 
each  side  of  said  connection  with  a  depth  of  one  hundred  feet,  except 
that  no  double  assessment  shall  be  levied ;  said  assessment  to  be  levied 
within  sixty  days  after  said  connection  is  made;  and  if  such  unsub- 
divided land  is  thereafter  subdivided  into  blocks  or  lots,  such  lots  shall 
be  assessed  as  herein  provided  as  to  subdivided  lands,  but  the  fifty 
feet  on  each  side  of  said  connection,  with  a  depth  of  one  hundred  feet, 
shall  not  be  again  assessed:  Provided  further,  That  hereafter  assess- 
ments at  the  rate  and  in  the  manner  herein  provided  for  shall  be  levied 
against  each  lot  or  parcel  of  land  abutting  any  water  main  or  service 
sewer  in  all  subdivisions  of  land,  within  sixty  days  after  the  recording 
of  such  subdivision  in  the  office  of  the  surveyor  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  except  in  cases  where  said  lots  or  parcels  of  land  have  been 
previously  assessed  for  the  same  main  or  service  sewer. 

SEC.  6.  That  in  all  cases  where  water  mains  have  heretofore  been 
laid  and  assessments  therefor  against  abutting  lots  or  land  not  levied 
pending  the  introduction  of  water  into  such  lots  or  land,  under  the 
provisions  of  an  act  of  Congress  approved  July  eighth,  eighteen  hun- 
dred and  ninety-eight,  such  assessments  shall  be  levied  under  the  pro- 
visions of  this  act. 

SEC.  7.  That  the  assessor  of  the  District  of  Columbia  is  hereby 
authorized  and  directed  in  cases  where  water-main  assessments,  or 
assessments  for  service  sewers,  may  be  quashed,  canceled,  set  aside, 
or  declared  void  by  the  supreme  court  of  the  District  of  Columbia, 
or  may  otherwise  be  canceled  or  set  aside,  by  reason  of  an  imperfect  qr 
erroneous  description  of  the  lot  or  parcel  of  ground  against  which  the 
same  shall  have  been  levied,  by  reason  of  such  tax  or  assessment  not 
having  been  authenticated  by  the  proper  officer  or  by  reason  of  a 


158  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

defective  return  of  service  of  notice,  or  for  any  technical  reason  other 
than  the  right  of  the  authorities  of  the  District  of  Columbia  to  levy 
assessment  or  lay  the  main  or  service  sewer  in  respect  of  which  assess- 
ment was  levied,  to  relevy  such  assessment  at  the  rate  and  in  the 
manner  provided  for  in  this  act:  Provided,  That  such  reassessment 
shall  be  made  within  sixty  days  from  date  of  such  cancellation. 

SEC.  8.  That  all  sums  received  by  the  collector  of  taxes  under  the 
provisions  of  this  act  on  account  of  assessments  levied  for  the  con- 
struction of  service  sewers  shall  be  credited  to  the  appropriation  under 
which  the  sewer  was  constructed  for  the  fiscal  year  in  which  such  sums 
shall  be  received. 

SEC.  9.  That  a  service  sewer  within  the  meaning  of  the  provisions 
of  this  act  shall  be  a  sewer  with  which  connection  may  be  directly 
made  for  the  purpose  of  providing  sewerage  facilities  to  abutting  prop- 
erty, and  such  sewers  shall  be  so  indicated  on  the  records  of  the  sewer 
division  of  the  engineer  department  of  the  District  of  Columbia. 

SEC.  10.  That  all  acts  and  parts  of  acts  inconsistent  with  the  pro- 
visions of  this  act  are  hereby  repealed. 

Approved,  April  22,  1904.     (33  Stat.,  pt.  1,  244.) 

Water  services  are  not  installed  by  the  municipality.  If  water- 
main  assessments  are  quashed  or  set  aside  by  the  court  by  reason  of 
any  technicality,  the  Commissioners  are  authorized  to  reassess  the 
lot  or  parcel  of  land  against  which  assessment  was  levied,  but  such 
reassessment  must  be  made  within  thirty  days  from  date  of  cancella- 
tion. (Act  of  July  8,  1898,  and  29  Stat.,  98.) 

Outside  of  the  city  of  Washington  assessments  against  land  not  sub- 
divided into  blocks  and  lots  must  be  made  on  a  frontage  of  not  exceed- 
ing 100  feet  for  each  lot  or  parcel  of  land,  and  shall  be  considered  in 
any  subsequent  subdivision  as  extending  to  a  depth  of  not  exceeding 
100  feet  from  the  front  of  said  lot  or  parcel  of  land.  (30  Stats.,  722.) 

In  any  assessment  or  reassessment  levied  under  provisions  of  act  of 
July  8,  1898,  owner  of  lot  or  parcel  of  land  assessed  must  be  credited 
with  any  amount  which  may  have  been  paid  prior  to  date  of  said  act 
upon  any  water-main  assessment  levied  against  such  lot  or  parcel  of 
land.  (30  Stat.,  722.) 

All  moneys  received  on  account  of  laying  of  water  mains  and  all 
other  moneys  received  on  account  of  the  water  department  must  be 
deposited  to  the  credit  of  the  water  fund,  to  be  used  exclusively  for 
the  support  of  the  water  department.  (L.  A.,  June  23,  1873.) 

No  special  assessments  are  levied  for  the  cost  of  grading  or  paving 

carriageways. 

« 

ASSESSMENTS    FOR    REMOVING    OR    SECURING    DANGEROUS    STRUCTURES. 

The  costs  of  removing  or  securing,  by  the  District  of  Columbia, 
dangerous  structures,  upon  refusal  or  neglect  of  owners  to  perform 


GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF   COLUMBIA.  159 

such  work  after  due  notice,  must  be  assessed  against  the  land  upon 
which  structure  or  structures  stand  or  stood,  and  unless  such  assess- 
ment is  paid  within  ninety  days  from  service  of  notice  the  same  shall 
bear  interest  at  rate  of  10  per  cent  per  annum  from  date  of  assessment 
until  paid  and  shall  be  collected  as  general  taxes  are  collected.  (30 
Stat.,  123.) 

ASSESSMENTS    FOR    INCLOSING    DANGEROUS    WELLS,    ETC. 

The  cost  of  fencing  or  otherwise  inclosing,  by  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia, lots  upon  which  exist  uncovered  wells  or  other  dangerous  holes 
or  excavations,  after  neglect  or  refusal  of  owner  to  perform  such  work 
upon  due  notice,  shall  be  assessed  as  a  tax  against  the  property  on 
which  such  nuisances  exist,  the  tax  so  assessed  to  bear  interest  at  rate 
of  10  per  cent  per  annum  and  to  be  carried  on  regular  tax  rolls  and 
collected  in  manner  provided  for  collection  of  other  taxes.  (30  Stat., 
924.) 

ASSESSMENTS    FOR    REMOVAL    OF    WEEDS. 

The  expense  of  removal,  by  the  District  of  Columbia,  of  weeds  of 
4  inches  or  more  in  height  from  unoccupied  land  in  the  city  of  Wash- 
ington or  its  more  densely  populated  suburbs,  upon  failure  or  neglect 
of  owner  to  perform  such  work,  shall  be  assessed  against  the  property 

on  which  such  weeds  were  located,  and  said  assessments  shall  bear 

i 

interest  at  rate  of  10  per  cent  per  annum  until  paid,  shall  be  carried  on 
regular  tax  rolls  of  the  District,  and  paid  in  manner  provided  for  col- 
lection of  general  taxes.  (30  Stat.,  959.) 

ASSESSMENTS    FOR    DRAINING    LOTS. 

In  case  owner  or  owners  of  lots,  after  due  notice,  fail  or  neglect  to 
connect  such  lots  with  water  mains  and  sewers,  as  required  by  law,  the 
Commissioners  shall  cause  such  connections  to  be  made,  the  expense 
to  be  paid  out  of  the  emergency  fund,  such  expense,  with  necessary 
costs  of  advertising,  to  be  assessed  as  a  tax  against  such  lots,  which  tax 
shall  be  carried  on  regluar  tax  rolls  and  be  collected  in  manner  pro- 
vided for  collection  of  other  taxes.  (29  Stat.,  126.) 

The  Commissioners  are  also  authorized  to  make  such  connections 
upon  any  street  or  avenue  about  to  be  paved  or  otherwise  improved 
before  any  such  pavement  or  other  permanent  works  are  put  down,  the 
costs  of  such  connections  to  be  assessed  as  explained  above.  (20  Stat., 
107;  28  Stat.,  144;  29  Stat.,  126.) 

SPECIAL    POLICEMEN    AT    STREET-RAILWAY    CROSSINGS. 

The  Commissioners  are  authorized  and  required  to  station  special 
policemen  at  such  street-railway  crossings  and  intersections  in  the  city 
of  Washington  as  they  may  deem  necessary,  the  expense  of  such  serv- 
ices to  be  paid  pro  rata  by  the  respective  railway  companies.  (30 
Stat.,  489.) 

74986—09 11 


160  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

ASSESSMENTS    FOR    CLEANING    OF    OFFENSIVE    CESSPOOLS. 

For  cleaning  offensive  cesspools,  by  the  District  of  Columbia,  in 
cases  where  owners  or  other  responsible  parties  fail  or  neglect  to  per- 
form such  work,  after  due  notice,  the  Commissioners  are  authorized 
to  assess  the  cost  thereof  as  a  tax  against  the  property  benefited, 
which  tax  shall  be  carried  on  the  regular  tax  roll  and  collected  in  the 
manner  provided  for  collection  of  other  taxes.  (30  Stat.,  233.) 

LIGHTING    TRACKS    OF    STEAM    RAILWAY    COMPANIES. 

All  railway  companies  using  engines  propelled  by  steam  must  pay 
the  District  of  Columbia  for  the  lighting  of  the  streets,  avenues,  lands, 
and  grounds  through  which  their  tracks  may  be  laid.  In  case  of 
default  of  such  payment,  actions  at  law  may  be  maintained  by  the 
District  of  Columbia  against  said  railway  companies.  (22  Stat.,  466.) 


COSTS    OF    ERECTION    OF    FIRE    ESCAPES. 


If  the  owners,  proprietors,  lessees,  or  trustees  of  buildings  used  as 
factories,  manufactories,  tenement  houses,  seminaries,  colleges, 
academies,  hospitals,  or  asylums,  fail  to  provide  such  buildings  with 
fire  escapes,  standpipes,  ladders,  lights,  and  alarm  gongs,  as  required 
by  law,  after  due  notice  from  the  Commissioners,  such  fire  escapes, 
etc.,  must  be  erected  by  the  Commissioners,  and  the  costs  thereof 
assessed  as  a  tax  against  the  building  on  which  they  are  erected  and 
the  ground  upon  which  the  same  stands,  and  the  Commissioners  shall 
issue  tax-lien  certificates  against  such  buildings  and  grounds  for  the 
amount  of  such  assessment,  bearing  interest- at  rate  of  10  per  cent  per 
annum,  which  certificates  may  be  turned  over  by  the  Commissioners 
to  the  contractor  for  performing  the  work.  (28  Stat.,  810.) 

ASSESSMENTS   FOR   REMOVING   SNOW,    ICE,    DIRT,    ETC. 

In  case  the  owner  or  tenant  of  any  house,  lot,  building,  or  land  shall 
neglect  to  cause  to  be  removed  snow,  ice,  sand,  dirt,  gravel,  etc.,  from 
paved  sidewalks  adjacent  to  said  property,  as  required  by  law,  the 
Commissioners  shall  cause  removal  of  same,  the  costs  of  which  shall 
be  assessed  as  a  tax  against  the  property  to  which  the  sidewalks  in 
question  belong,  and  the  said  tax  so  assessed  shall  be  carried  on  the 
regular  tax  roll  and  collected  in  manner  provided  for  collection  of 
other  taxes.  (28  Stat.,  809.) 

ASSESSMENTS   FOR   PAVING    STREETS    ADJACENT   TO    STREET-RAILWAY   TRACKS. 

When  any  street  or  avenue  through  which  a  street  railway  runs  shall 
be  paved,  such  railway  companies  shall  bear  all  of  the  expense  for  that 
portion  of  the  work  lying  between  the  exterior  rails  of  the  tracks  of 
such  roads  and  for  a  distance  of  2  feet  from  and  exterior  to  such  tracks, 
on  each  side  thereof,  and  of  keeping  the  same  in  repair;  and  when 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT   OF   COLUMBIA.  161 

street  railways  cross  any  street  or  avenue  the  pavement  between  the 
tracks  of  such  railway  shall,  at  the  expense  of  the  company  own- 
ing the  tracks,  be  made  to  conform  to  the  pavement  used  upon  such 
street  or  avenue.  If  any  street-railway  company  shall  neglect  or 
refuse  to  perform  the  work  required,  said  pavement  shall  be  laid  by 
the  District  of  Columbia  and  the  costs  collected  from  such  company 
by  issuing  certificates  of  indebtedness  against  the  property,  real  or 
personal,  of  such  railway  company,  which  certificates  shall  bear  inter- 
est at  the  rate  of  10  per  cent  per  annum  until  paid,  and  which,  until 
paid,  shall  remain  a  lien  upon  the  property  on  or  against  which  they 
are  issued,  together  with  the  franchise  of  said  company;  and  if  such 
certificates  are  not  paid  within  one  year  the  Commissioners  may  pro- 
ceed to  sell  the  property  against  which  they  are  issued,  or  so  much 
thereof  as  may  be  necessary  to  pay  the  amount  due,  such  sale  to  be 
first  advertised  daily  for  one  week  in  some  newspaper  published  in 
the  city  of  Washington,  and  to  be  at  public  auction,  to  the  highest 
bidder.  (20  Stat.,  106.) 


TAXATION    OF   PERSONAL   PROPERTY. 


The  board  of  personal  tax  appraisers  consists  of  the  assessor,  chair- 
man, and  the  two  members  of  the  board  of  assistant  assessors  detailed 
to  that  duty  as  hereinbefore  explained.  (28  Stat.,  282,  and  32  Stat., 
pt.  1,  617.) 

The  assessor  is  required  to  annually  cause  to  be  prepared  a  printed 
blank  schedule  of  all  tangible  personal  property  and  of  general  mer- 
chandise, stock  in  trade,  owned  or  held  in  trust,  or  otherwise,  subject 
to  taxation,  and  of  the  classes  of  corporations  and  companies  to  be 
assessed,  together  with  the  rate  of  tax  prescribed,  to  which  shall  be 
appended  an  affidavit  in  blank,  setting  forth  that  the  return  presents 
a  full  and  true  statement  of  all  such  personal  property,  taxable  capital, 
or  other  basis  of  assessment,  or  either,  as  the  case  may  be. 

When  said  schedule  is  ready  for  delivery,  notice  thereof  must  be 
given  by  the  assessor  by  advertisement  for  three  successive  secular 
days  in  one  or  more  of  the  daily  newspapers  published  in  the  District 
of  Columbia,  and  a  copy  of  said  schedule  must  be  delivered  to  any 
citizen  applying  therefor  at  the  office  of  the  assessor.  These  schedules 
must  be  filled  out  and  sworn  to,  and  returned  to  the  office-  of  the 
assessor  within  thirty  days  after  the  last  publication  of  advertisement. 
The  members  of  the  board  of  personal  tax  appraisers  are  authorized 
to  administer,  without  charge,  oaths  for  this  purpose.  For  failure  to 
make  return  within  specified  time,  20  per  cent  of  assessed  valuation 
of  personal  property  is  added. 

Upon  the  filing  of  these  returns  the  two  members  of  the  boa~d  of 
assistant  assessors  designated  by  the  assessor  to  assess  personal  prop- 
erty must,  under  the  direction  and  supervision  of  the  assessor,  assess 


162  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

personal  property.  If  the  board  of  personal  tax  appraisers  is  not 
satisfied  as  to  the  correctness  of  any  return  of  personal  property  they 
may  reject  the  same,  and  said  board,  or  any  one  of  the  members 
thereof,  may,  from  the  best  information  he  or  they  can  procure,  by 
making  such  an  examination  of  the  personal  property  as  may  be 
practicable,  assess  the  same  in  such  amount  as  may  to  him  or  them 
seem  just,  and  notice  of  the  rejection  of  the  return  shall  be  given  to 
the  party  interested  by  leaving  the  same  at  the  address  given  in  said 
return.  (32  Stat.,  pt.  1,  617,  618.) 

In  all  cases,  however,  there  is  the  right  of  appeal  to  the  board  of 
personal  tax  appeals,  hereinafter  referred  to,  within  fifteen  days  after 
delivery  of  said  notice  of  rejection.  Any  person  making  a  false  affi- 
davit as  to  taxation  of  personal  property  is  deemed  guilty  of  perjury, 
and  upon  conviction  is  subject  to  the  penalties  provided  for  that 
offense.  (Ib.,  618.) 

If  the  personal-tax  appraisers  fail  to  complete  any  of  the  duties 
required  by  law  to  be  performed  by  them  within  the  time  specified, 
the  taxation  based  upon  the  same  is  not,  by  reason  thereof,  invalid, 
but  the  appraisers  must  proceed  with  all  reasonable  diligence  to  com- 
plete such  duties,  and  their  acts  are  valid  as  if  performed  within  the 
time  provided  therefor.  (Ib.,  620.) 

If  at  any  time  within  any  current  year  property  subject  to  taxation 
shall  be  discovered  to  have  been  omitted  from  assessment,  the  board 
of  personal-tax  appraisers  shall  immediately  assess  the  same  for  the 
then  current  year,  giving  notice  in  writing  to  the  persons  or  corpora- 
tion so  assessed,  who  shall  have  the  right  of  appeal  within  ten  days 
from  date  of  said  notice.  (Ib.) 


BOAED    OF    PERSONAL-TAX    APPEALS. 


The  board  of  five  (28  Stat.,  282,  and  32  Stat.,  pt.  1,  617)  assist- 
ant assessors,  with  the  assessor  as  chairman,  compose  a  board  of  per- 
sonal-tax appeals,  which  must  convene  in  a  place  provided  therefor 
by  the  assessor,  on  the  first  Monday  in  February  of  each  year,  public 
notice  of  the  time  and  place  of  such  meeting  having  been  given  by 
advertisement  for  two  consecutive  secular  days  in  two  daily  news- 
papers published  in  the  District  of  Columbia.  It  is  the  duty  of  this 
board,  between  the  day  of  convening  to  and  including  the  second 
Monday  in  March  of  each  year  (33  Stat.,pt.  1,  563),  to  hear  all 
appeals  made  by  any  person  or  persons  against  the  assessments  made 
by  the  board  of  personal-tax  appraisers,  and  to  impartially  equalize 
the  valuation  of  said  personal  property  as  the  basis  for  assessment. 

Any  four  members  of  said  board  shall  constitute  a  quorum  for  busi- 
ness, and  in  the  absence  of  the  assessor  a  temporary  chairman  may  be 
chosen.  The  board  is  empowered  to  diminish  or  increase  such  assess- 
ments as  they  may  believe  to  have  been  returned  at  other  than  their 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  163 

true  value  to  such  amount  as.  in  their  opinion  may  be  the  value  thereof, 
and  the  action  of  the  board  in  such  cases  is  final.     (32  Stat.,  pt.  1, 620.) 


DISTRAINT   AND    SALE. 


When  the  taxes  on  personal  property  due  and  payable  in  each  year 
shall  not  be  paid  on  or  before  the  1st  of  June,  the  collector  of  taxes  or 
his  deputy  may  distrain  sufficient  goods  and  chattels  found  within  the 
District  of  Columbia  and  belonging  to  the  person  charged  with  suc.h 
tax  to  pay  the  taxes  remaining  due,  together  with  the  penalty  thereon, 
and  the  costs  that  may  accrue ;  and  for  want  of  such  goods  and  chattels 
said  collector  of  taxes  may  levy  upon  and  sell  at  auction  the  estate  and 
interest  of  such  person  in  any  parcel  of  land  in  said  District;  and  in  the 
case  of  the  levy  on  any  estate  or  interest  in  land  the  proceedings  subse- 
quent to  sale  thereof  are  the  same  as  provided  by  law  in  the  case  of 
sales  for  arrears  of  taxes  against  real  estate;  and  in  case  of  distraint  of 
personal  property  or  the  levy  upon  real  estate,  as  aforesaid,  the  col- 
lector of  taxes  must  immediately  proceed  to  advertise  the  same  by 
public  notice,  to  be  posted  in  the  office  of  said  collector,  and  by  adver- 
tisement three  times  within  one  week,  in  one  or  more  of  the  daily  news- 
papers published  in  said  District,  stating  the  time  when  and  the  place 
where  such  property  will  be  sold,  the  last  publication  to  be  at  least  six 
days  before  the  date  of  sale,  and  if  the  said  taxes  and  penalty  thereon, 
and  the  costs  and  expenses  which  shall  have  accrued  thereon,  shall  not 
be  paid  before  the  day  fixed  for  such  sale,  which  must  not  be  less  than 
ten  days  after  said  levy  or  taking  of  said  property,  the  collector  must 
proceed  to  sell  at  public  auction  in  his  office  to  the  highest  bidder  such 
property,  or  so  much  thereof  as  may  be  needed  to  pay  such  taxes, 
penalties,  and  accrued  costs  and  expenses  of  such  distraint  and  sale. 
Said  collector  must  report  in  detail  in  writing  every  distraint  and  sale 
of  personal  property  to  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia, or  their  successors  in  office,  and  his  accounts  in  respect  to  every 
such  distraint  or  sale  must  forthwith  be  submitted  to  the  auditor  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  and  be  audited  by  him.  Any  surplus  result- 
ing from  such  sale  over  and  above  such  taxes,  costs,  and  expenses 
must  be  paid  into  the  Treasury,  and  upon  being  claimed  by  the  owner 
or  owners  of  the  goods  and  chattels  aforesaid  must  be  paid  to  him  or 
them  upon  the  certificate  of  the  collector  of  taxes  stating  in  full  the 
amount  of  such  excess.  (Ib.,  621.) 

RATE    OF  TAXATION   ON   PERSONAL  PROPERTY. 

On  all  tangible  personal  property  assessed  at  a  fair  cash  value  (over 
and  above  the  exemptions  provided),  including  vessels,  ships,  boats, 
tools,  implements,  horses,  and  other  animals,  carriages,  wagons,  and 
other  vehicles,  there  must  be  paid  1£  per  cent  on  the  assessed  value 
thereof.  (Ib.,  618.) 


164  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

The  taxes  for  private  banks  and  bankers,  general  brokers,  and  note 
brokers  date  from  the  1st  day  of  July  in  each  year  and  expire  on  the 
30th  day  of  June  following.  Said  taxes  date  from  the  first  day  of  the 
month  in  which  the  liability  begins,  and  payment  must  be  made  for  a 
proportionate  amount.  (32  Stat.,  pt.  1,  621.) 


EXEMPTIONS    OF    PERSONAL   PROPERTY. 


The  following  personal  property  is  exempt  from  taxation: 

The  personal  property  of  all  library,  benevolent,  charitable,  and 
scientific  institutions  incorporated  under  the  laws  of  the  United  States 
or  of  the  District  of  Columbia  and  not  conducted  for  private  gain. 

Libraries,  schoolbboks,  wearing  apparel,  articles  of  personal  adorn- 
ment, all  family  portraits,  and  heirlooms. 

Household  and  other  belongings,  not  held  for  sale,  to  the  value  of 
$1,000,  owned  by  the  occupant  of  any  dwelling  house  or  other  place 
of  abode,  in  which  such  household  and  other  belongings  may  be 
located.  (Ib.,  620.)  Personal  property  of  foreign  legations. 


PENALTY    FOR    VIOLATION    OF    LAW. 


Any  person  violating  any  of  the  provisions  of  the  personal-tax  law 
is  liable  to  a  penalty  of  not  exceeding  $500  for  each  offense,  such 
penalty  to  be  imposed  upon  conviction  in  the  police  court  of  the  Dis- 
trict as  other  fines  and  penalties  are  imposed,  and  in  default  of  pay- 
ment of  such  penalty  the  person  or  persons  so  convicted  shall  be 
imprisoned,  in  the  discretion  of  the  court,  not  exceeding  six  months. 
(Ib.,  622.) 

LICENSES. 

All  licenses  are  issued  by  the  assessor,  over  his  hand  and  official  seal. 
No  person  is  permitted  to  carry  on  any  business,  trade,  profession,  or 
calling,  for  which  a  license  is  imposed,  without  having  first  obtained 
such  license.  Applications  for  licenses  must  be  made  to  the  assessor, 
and  no  license  can  be  granted  until  payment  for  the  same  shall  have 
been  made.  Each  license  must  specify  the  name  of  the  person  to 
whom  issued,  the  business,  trade,  profession,  calling,  etc.,  for  which 
it  is  granted,  and  the  location  at  which  such  business  is  to  be  carried 
on.  Licenses  may  be  assigned  or  transferred  upon  application,  under 
the  terms  and  conditions  applicable  to  the  original  granting  of  the 
same,  and  the  assessor  must  issue  a  certificate  of  such  transfer  upon 
payment  of  a  fee  of  50  cents.  When  more  than  one  business,  trade, 
profession,  calling,  etc.,  for  which  a  license  is  prescribed,  shall  be  car- 
ried on  by  the  same  person,  a  license  must  be  obtained  for  each  such 
business,  etc.  Licenses  are  good  only  for  the  location  designated 
thereon,  and  no  license  can  be  issued  for  more  than  one  place  of  busi- 
ness without  payment  of  separate  tax  for  each.  All  licenses  date  from 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  165 

the  1st  of  November  and  expire  on  the  31st  of  October  following, 
except  those  specially  designated  in  the  following  list.  Licenses  issued 
at  any  time  after  beginning  of  license  year  date  from  first  day  of 
month  of  issue  and  end  the  last  day  of  license  year,  payment  being 
made  for  proportionate  amount  of  license  tax.  In  cases  where  license 
is  less  than  $5  per  annum  they  terminate  one  year  from  first  day  of 
month  of  issue.  No  one  holding  a  license  is  permitted  to  allow  any 
other  person  charged  with  a  separate  license  to  operate  under  his 
license.  All  licenses  must  be  conspicuously  posted  on  premises  of  the 
licensee,  and  be  accessible  at  all  times  for  inspection  by  police  offi- 
cers or  others  authorized  in  that  respect.  Licensees  having  no  located 
place  of  business  must  exhibit  their  licenses  when  requested  to  do  so 
by  proper  authorities. 

Applications  for  licenses  for  hotels  and  theaters  must  have  written 
approval  of  inspector  of  buildings  and  chief  of  fire  department.  Any 
license  issued  to  proprietor  of  a  theater  or  other  public  place  of 
amusement  may  be  terminated  by  the  Commissioners  whenever  it 
shall  appear  to  them  that  after  due  notice  the  person  holding  such 
license  shall  have  failed  to  comply  with  such  regulations  as  may  be 
prescribed  by  the  Commissioners  for  the  public  decency.  (Act  of 
March  1,  1901.) 

Proprietors  of  hotels  can  not  obtain  a  license  for  less  than  $30  per 
annum. 

An  act  to  prevent  fraudulent  transactions  on  the  part  of  commission 
merchants,  approved  March  21,  1892,  is  made  applicable  to  auction- 
eers, their  agents,  and  employees. 

Drivers  of  licensed  passenger  vehicles,  while  transacting  such  busi- 
ness, must  wear  upon  their  breasts  a  badge  numbered  to  correspond 
with  license  of  his  vehicle,  such  badge  being  furnished  by  District  of 
Columbia  upon  payment  of  fee  of  50  cents. 

In  addition  to  license  for  proprietors  of  livery  stables,  they  must 
obtain  licenses  for  any  vehicles  owned  by  them  occupying  public 
stands. 

The  Commissioners  must  approve  applications  for  licenses  for  vehi- 
cles for  transportation  of  passengers  operated  over  a  definite  route. 

Dealers  in  general  merchandise  of  every  description  must  pay  1£ 
per  cent  on  their  average  stock  in  trade  for  the  preceding  year. 

It  is  unlawful  for  any  person  or  persons  entering  the  District  of 
Columbia  subsequent  to  June  30  in  each  year  and  establishing  a  place 
of  business  for  the  sale  of  goods,  wares,  or  merchandise,  either  at 
private  sale  or  at  auction,  to  conduct  such  business  until  a  sworn  state- 
ment of  the  value  of  said  stock  has  been  filed  with  the  assessor  of  the 
District  of  Columbia,  who  shall  thereupon  render  a  bill  for  the  unex- 
pired  portion  of  the  fiscal  year  at  the  same  rate  as  other  personal  taxes 
are  levied.  The  assessor  is  authorized  to  reassess  said  stock  whenever 


166  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

in  his  judgment  it  has  been  undervalued.  The  goods,  wares,  and  mer- 
chandise of  any  person  or  persons  who  shall  fail  to  pay  the  tax  required 
within  three  days  after  beginning  business  are  subject  to  distraint, 
and  the  assessor  must  place  bills  therefor  in  the  hands  of  the  collector 
of  taxes,  who  must  seize  sufficient  of  the  goods  of  the  delinquent  to 
satisfy  said  tax.  The  owner,  however,  has  the  right  of  redemption 
within  thirty  days  on  payment  of  said  tax,  to  which  must  be  added  a 
penalty  of  1  per  cent,  together  with  the  costs  of  seizure.  The  col- 
lector must  sell  such  goods  as  are  not  redeemed  at  public  auction  after 
advertisement  for  three  days  preceding  said  sale. 

Hotel  companies  and  the  proprietors  of  hotels  are  required  to  pay  \\ 
per  cent  on  the  assessed  value  of  their  furniture. 

Each  national  bank,  as  the  trustee  for  its  stockholders,  through  its 
president  or  cashier,  and  all  other  incorporated  banks  and  trust  com- 
panies in  the  District  of  Columbia,  through  their  presidents  or  cash- 
iers, and  all  gas,  electric  lighting,  and  telephone  companies,  through 
their  proper  officers,  must  make  affidavit  to  the  board  of  personal-tax 
appraisers  on  or  before  the  1st  day  of  August  each  year  as  to  the 
amount  of  its  or  their  gross  earnings  for  the  preceding  year  ending 
the  30th  day  of  June,  and  must  pay  per  annum  on  such  gross  earn- 
ings as  follows :  Each  national  bank  and  all  other  incorporated  banks 
and  trust  companies,  respectively,  6  per  cent;  each  gas  company,  5 
per  cent;  each  electric  lighting  and  telephone  company,  4  per  cent. 
And  in  addition  thereto  the  real  estate  owned  by  each  national  or  other 
incorporated  bank  and  each  trust,  gas,  electric  lighting,  and  telephone 
company  in  the  District  of  Columbia  is  taxed  as  other  real  estate  in 
said  District.  Street  railroad  companies  pay  4  per  cent  per  annum  on 
their  gross  receipts  and  other  taxes.  Insurance  companies  pay  1£  Per 
cent  on  premium  receipts. 

All  companies  who  guaranty  the  fidelity  of  any  individual  or  indi- 
viduals, such  as  bonding  companies,  pay  1J  per  cent  of  their  gross 
receipts  in  the  District  of  Columbia. 

Savings  banks  having  no  capital  stock  and  paying  interest  to  their 
depositors  must,  through  their  president  or  cashier,  make  affidavit  to 
the  board  of  personal-tax  appraisers  on  or  before  the  1st  day  of 
August  in  each  year  as  to  the  amount  of  their  surplus  and  undivided 
profits,  and  pay  a  sum  equal  to  1^  per  cent  on  the  amount  of  their 
surplus  and  undivided  profits  on  the  30th  day  of  June  preceding. 

The  capital  stock  of  all  corporations  other  than  those  herein  provided 
for,  organized  in  the  District  of  Columbia  or  under  the  laws  of  any  of 
the  States  or  Territories  of  the  United  States,  chiefly  for  the  purpose 
of,  and  transacting  business  within,  the  District  of  Columbia,  except 
those  exempted  by  the  laws  relating  to  the  District  of  Columbia,  is 
appraised  in  bulk  at  its  fair  cash  value  by  the  board  of  personal-tax 
appraisers,  and  the  corporation  issuing  the  same  is  liable  for  the  tax 


GOVERNMENT   OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  167 

thereon  according  to  such  value,  and  must  pay  a  sum  equal  to  1  \  per 
cent  on  the  assessed  valuation  thereof;  but  from  the  assessed  valuation 
of  such  capital  stock  is  first  deducted  the  value  of  any  and  all  real 
estate  owned  by  such  corporation  in  said  District,  which  real  estate  is 
separately  taxed  against  said  corporation.  This  does  not  include 
newspaper,  real  estate,  and  mercantile  companies,  which  by  reason  of 
incorporation  receive  no  special  franchise  or  privilege;  but  all  such 
corporations  are  rated,  assessed,  and  taxed  as  individuals  conducting 
business  in  similar  lines  are  rated,  assessed,  and  taxed. 

Building  associations  pay  to  the  collector  of  taxes  of  the  District  of 
Columbia  4  per  cent  per  annum  on  their  gross  earnings  for  the  pre- 
ceding year  ending  June  30. 

All  taxes  levied  under  the  foregoing  provisions  of  this  law  are  due, 
payable,  and  collectible  in  May  of  each  year,  and  are  subject  to  the 
same  penalties  for  nonpayment  thereof  as  the  general  tax  on  real 
estate,  until  distraint  or  sale. 

Private  banks  or  bankers,  not  incorporated,  pay  a  tax  of  $500  per 
annum.  General  brokers  pay  a  tax  of  $250  per  annum.  The  Wash- 
ington Stock  Exchange  pays  $500  per  annum  in  lieu  of  tax  on  mem- 
bers thereof  for  business  done  on  said  exchange.  Any  broker  who  is 
a  member  of  a  regularly  organized  stock  exchange  located  outside  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  and  transacting  a  brokerage  business  therein, 
pays  $100  per  annum.  If  any  person  or  firm  shall  have  paid  the  tax 
provided  for  banks  and  bankers,  such  person  or.  firm  can  not  again  be 
taxed  as  a  broker  or  brokers.  Note  brokers  pay  a  tax  of  $100  per 
annum.  Exceptions  are  made  of  cooperative  associations  whose  busi- 
ness is  restricted  to  the  members  of  such  association. 

For  entertainments  given  in  church  premises  or  private  residences, 
where  the  proceeds  are  for  church  or  charitable  purposes  and  no  rental 
is  charged,  no  license  is  required. 

Applications  for  licenses  for  shooting  galleries  must  be  accompanied 
with  certificate  from  inspector  of  buildings  that  suitable  precautions 
have  been  taken  for  public  safety,  and  with  written  authority  from 
majority  of  occupants  and  residents  on  the  same  side  of  the  square  in 
which  proposed  gallery  is  to  be  located,  and  also  on  confronting  side 
of  the  square  fronting  opposite  to  the  same.  The  chief  of  police  is 
authorized  to  prescribe  the  caliber,  firearms,  and  kind  of  cartridges 
to  be  used. 

The  Commissioners  have  discretion  to  refuse  licenses  for  merry-go- 
rounds,  flying  horses,  etc. 

Applications  for  licenses  for  massage  establishments,  mediums, 
clairvoyants,  soothsayers,  fortune  tellers,  and  palmists  must  have 
the  approval  of  the  chief  of  police. 

Hucksters  are  furnished  with  badges  corresponding  to  number  of 
license,  which  must  be  worn  while  transacting  business,  in  addition  to 


168  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT   OF    COLMMBIA. 

a  corresponding  number  which  must  be  attached  to  their  vehicles. 
Hucksters'  licenses  need  not  be  procured  by  persons  bringing  and  sell- 
ing at  the  several  markets  produce  of  their  own  raising. 

The  fire  marshal  must  approve  applications  for  licenses  for  buildings 
for  storage  of  inflammable  materials. 

Persons  violating  any  of  the  provisions  of  the  license  law,  upon 
conviction  thereof  in  the  police  court  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  are 
punishable  by  a  fine  of  not  more  than  $500  for  each  offense,  and  in 
default  of  payment,  by  imprisonment  not  exceeding  thirty  days,  in  the 
discretion  of  the  court.  (32  Stat.,  pt.  1,  622  to  629.) 

PERMIT   FEES,  LICENSE    FEES,  AND    MISCELLANEOUS    CHARGES. 

[NOTES.— L.  A.,  legislative  assembly;  B.  R.,  building  regulations;  W.  D.,  Webb's  Digest  of  the  laws 
of  the  former  city  of  Washington.    *  Indicates  that  the  fee  is  not  a  public  revenue.] 

Agricultural  exhibits,  November '1,  $100  per  annum,  $10  per  week,  $5  each  subse- 
quent week,  $3  per  day. 

Amusements  not  otherwise  provided  for,  November  1,  $100  per  annum,  $10  per  week, 
$5  each  subsequent  week,  $3  per  day. 

Apothecaries,  November  1,  $6  per  annum. 

Art  exhibits,  November  1,  $100  per  annum,  $10  per  week,  $5  each  subsequent  week, 
$3  per  day. 

Athletic  grounds,  $20  per  week,  $5  per  day. 

Auctioneers,  November  1,-  $100  per  annum. 

Automatic  machines.     (See  Slot  machines.) 

Automobiles,  autovehicles,  etc.,  July  1,  $9  per  annum. 

Automobile  establishments,  November  1,  $25  license  for  ten  vehicles  or  less  per 
annum,  $2  each  additional  vehicle. 

Awning  permits,  $1  each  awning.     (B.  R.,  sec.  31.) 

Balls,  $3  per  night. 

Bankers,  private  (not  incorporated),  July  1,  $500  per  annum. 

Barrooms,  November  1,  $800  per  annum. 

Baseball  grounds,  $20  per  week,  $5  per  day. 

Baths,  November  1,  $25,  Turkish,  Russian,  or  medicated,  per  annum. 

Billposters,  November  1,  $20  per  annum. 

Billiard  rooms,  November  1,  $12  per  annum  for  each  billiard,  bagatelle,  jenny  lind, 
or  pool  table,  shuffle  board,  or  other  legitimate  game  table. 

Boarding  houses  (public),  November  1,  $1  per  annum  for  each  room. 

Boiler  and  engine  permits,  $1  each  plant.     (B.  R.,  sec.  31.) 

Bowling  alleys,  $12  per  annum. 

Boxing  schools,  November  1,  $12  per  annum. 

Brewers,  November  1,  $250  per  annum. 

Brewers'  agents,  November  1,  $250  per  annum. 

Brokers,  real  estate,  November  1,  $50  per  annum. 

Brokers,  railroad  ticket,  November  1,  $25  per  annum. 

Brokers,  general,  July  1,  $250  per  annum. 

Brokers,  general  (members  of  stock  exchange),  July  1,  $100  per  annum. 

Brokers,  note,  July  1,  $100  per  annum. 

Building  contractors,  November  1,  $25  per  annum. 

Buildings,  new,  permit  for,  $2  each  building.     (B.  R.,  sec.  33.) 

Building  permits,  repairs  or  alterations,  $1  each  building.     (B.  R.,  sec.  31.) 

Carnivals,  November  1,  $100  per  annum,  $10  per  week,  $5  each  subsequent  week,  $3 
per  day. 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

Carriages  for  hire,  July  1,  $6,  drawn  by  one  animal,  per  annum;  $9,  more  than  one 
animal,  per  annum;  $9  by  other  motive  power,  per  annum. 

Carriage  and  wagon  making  establishments,  November  1,  $25  per  annum. 

Cattle  dealers,  November  1,  $15  per  annum. 

Cattle  exhibits,  November  1,  $100  per  annum,  $10  per  week,  $5  each  subsequent 
week,  $3  per  day. 

Cigar  dealers,  November  1,  $12  per  annum. 

Circuses,  $200  per  day. 

Claim  agents,  November  1,  $25  per  annum. 

Clairvoyants,  November  1,  $25  per  annum. 

Commission  merchants,  November  1,  $40  per  annum. 

Concerts,  $3  per  night. 

Confectionery  establishments,  November  1,  $12  per  annum. 

Contractors  of  all  kinds,  November  1,  $25  per  annum. 

Cook  shops,  November  1,  $18  per  annum. 

Dairy  lunches,  November  1,  $18  per  annum. 

Deadly  and  dangerous  weapons.     Dealers  in  are  required  to  file  bonds  of  $1,000  each 
but  no  fee  is  charged.     (27  Stats.,  117.) 

Dealers  in  markets,  November  1,  $5  per  annum. 

Death,  certificate  of,  50  cents  each.      (29  Stats.,  695.) 

Dental  examiners,  board  of;  examinations  by,  $10;  certificates  of,  $1.     (27  Stats.,  43.) 

Distillers  or  rectifiers,  November  1,  $250  per  annum. 

Dog  licenses,  $2  each  dog  per  annum.     (20  Stats.,  173.) 

Dogs,  release  of,  from  pound,  $2  each  dog.     (20  Stats.,  174.) 

Druggists,  November  1,  $6  per  annum. 

Eating  houses,  November  1,  $18  per  annum. 

Electromobiles,  July  1,  $9  per  annum. 

Employment  agencies,  November  1,  $25  per  annum. 

Engineers,  steam.     (See  Steam  engineers.) 

Entertainments,  $3  per  night. 

Entertainment  halls,  November  1,  $100  per  annum,  $10  per  week,  $5  each  subsequent 
week,  $3  per  day. 

Excavations  in  streets,  $1  each.     (B.  R.,  sec.  31.) 

Exhibition  halls,  November  1,  $100  per  annum,  $10  per  week,  $5  each  subsequent 
week,  $3  per  day. 

Exhibits — agricultural,  art,  cattle,  floral,  food,  freaks,  industrial,  mechanical,  muse- 
ums, poultry,  side  shows,  etc.,  November  1,  $100  per  annum.  $10  per  week,  $5 
each  subsequent  week,  $3  per  day. 

Explosives,  $1  per  annum. 

Fairs,  November  1,  $100  per  annum,  $10  per  week,  $5  each  subsequent  week,  $3 
per  day. 

Fencing  schools,  November  1,  $12  per  annum. 

Fireworks,  $50  per  annum. 

Fish-wharf  privilege,  annually  sold  to  highest  bidder.     (W.  D.,  147.) 

*Fish-wharf  charges:  Shad  and  other  large  fish  at  the  rate  of  20  cents  per  100,  her- 
ring at  the  rate  of  20  cents  per  1,000.  (W.  D..  147-149.) 

Florists,  November  1,  $15  per  annum. 

*Flour,  inspection  of,  1  cent  and  one  drawing  per  barrel  or  half  barrel;  1  cent  per 
196  pounds  of  flour  in  sacks;  $5  in  appeals  to  commissions  of  flour  inspection.  (30 
Stats.,  766.) 

Flying  horses.     (See  Merry-go-rounds.) 

Football  grounds,  $20  per  week,  $5  per  day. 

Fortune  tellers,  November  1,  $25  per  annum. 

Fuel  hucksters,  November  1,  $5  per  annum. 


170  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

Gas  meters,  inspection  of,  50  cents  each  new  meter,  20  cents  for  each  repaired  meter. 

(18  Stats.,  279.) 

General  brokers,  July  1,  $250  per  annum. 

General  brokers  (members  of  stock  exchange),  July  1,  $100  per  annum. 
Golf  grounds,  $20  per  week,  $5  per  day. 
Gasoline,  $5  per  annum. 
Gymnasiums,  November  1,  $12  per  annum. 
Hacks.     (See  Carriages.) 
Hand  laundries,  November  1,  $10  per  annum. 
Hay  scales,  annually,  on  or  about  July  10,  sold  to  the  highest  bidder  at  public  auction. 

(L.  A.,  369.) 
Hay,  straw,  fodder,  or  oats  in  the  straw,. fee  of  weighmaster  for  weighing: 

*  For  loads  of  500  pounds  or  less,  each,  10  cents.     (L.  A.,  368.) 

*  For  loads  between  500  and  2,000  pounds  each,  35  cents.     (76.) 

*  For  loads  over  2,000  pounds  each,  50  cents.    (Attorney's  Opinions,  vol.  4,  309-485.) 

*  For  bundles  or  packages,  each,  2  cents.     (L.  A.,  368.) 
Heating  plants,  changes  in,  permits  $1.     (B.  R.,  sec.  31.) 

Hotels,  November  1,  $1  per  annum  for  each  room  for  the  accommodation  of  guests. 

Hucksters,  April  1,  $12  per  annum  for  each  vehicle. 

Ice-cream  parlors,  November  1,  $18  per  annum. 

Improvement  and  land  companies.     (See  Land  and  improvement  companies.) 

Inflammable  oils,  November  1,  $10  per  annum  for  storing  quantity  exceeding  5  barrels. 

Insurance: 

All  companies  and  associations.  For  filing  charter  and  other  qualifying  docu- 
ments, together  with  issuing  license  to  company,  such  license  authorizing  the 
company  to  issue  only  its  own  policies,  $10. 

Local  and  foreign  companies.  Fee  to  be  paid  by  the  company,  $50.  Each 
insurance  company,  local  or  foreign,  desiring  to  act  as  agent  for  the  purpose  of 
receiving  business  from  another  company,  or  from  agents  or  representatives 
of  any  other  company,  is  required  to  procure  a  "general  insurance  license." 

Foreign  companies.  Fee  to  be  paid  by  the  agent,  $50.  Must  be  licensed  under 
section  646  before  they  can  in  any  way  do  business  in  the  District  of  Columbia. 

A  foreign  company  issuing  its  own  policy  to  a  person  in  the  District  of  Columbia 
is  not  required  to  be  represented  by  a  principal  or  policy-writing  agent.  If 
such  a  company  desires,  however,  to  do  business  in  the  District  by  issuing 
policies  there,  then  its  representatives  must  hold  a  "general  insurance  license." 

Principal  or  policy-writing  agent's  license.  Fee  to  be  paid  by  the  agent,  $50. 
This  "general  insurance  license"  may  be  issued  to  a  person,  or  a  firm  not 
exceeding  two  members,  or  an  association,  or  to  a  corporation,'  or  secretary  or 
assistant  secretary  of  either  of  such  bodies  having  such  officers.  Under  this 
form  of  license  an  unlimited  number  of  companies  may  be  represented  by  an 
agent;  and  power  is  granted  to  the  licensee  to  appoint  solicitors  for  each  com- 
pany he  represents.  A  policy-writing  agent  may  also  act  as  broker. 

Brokers'  "general  insurance  license."  Fee  to  be  paid  by  broker,  $50.  This 
license  carries  with  it  all  the  privileges  granted  a  principal  or  policy-writing 
agent,  except  that  the  licensee  can  not  issue  policies  nor  appoint  solicitors.  A 
broker  represents  no  company,  but  places  the  business  he  controls  wherever  he 
elects  in  companies  that  are  licensed  to  do  business  in  the  District  of  Columbia. 

Solicitor's  license.  Fee  to  be  paid  by  the  solicitor,  $5.  A  solicitor  must  be 
employed  in  some  capacity  by  a  company  or  its  principal  agent.  License  privi- 
lege is  limited  to  one  company  only  and  the  name  of  such  company  must  be 
embodied  in  the  license. 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  171 

Industrial  solicitor's  license.  Fee  to  be  paid  by  the  solicitor,  $2.  Limited  to  one 
company,  and  the  name  of  such  company  must  appear  in  the  license.  Licenses 
for  companies,  agents,  solicitors,  and  brokers  now  doing  business  in  the  Dis- 
trict will  bear  date  as  of  January  1,  1902,  and  be  in  force  until  April  30,  1902, 
fees  for  which  must  be  prepaid.  *  Applications  for  annual  licenses  for  the  same 
must  be  applied  for  and  prepaid  during  the  month  of  March,  1902.  Annual 
licenses  take  effect  May  1,  1902.  All  licenses  are  transferable  by  assignment, 
fee  for  each  assignment  being  25  cents.  (Order  February  4,  1902.) 

Investment  associations,  November  1,  $100  per  annum. 

Junk  dealers,  $40  per  annum.     (26  Stats.,  841.) 

Land  and  improvement  companies,  November  1,  $50  per  annum. 

Laundries,  November  1,  $20,  steam  or  other  power,  per  annum;  $10  per  annum, 
operated  by  hand. 

Lawn  fetes.     (See  Picnics.) 

Lecture  halls,  November  1,  $100  per  annum;  $10  per  week;  $5  each  subsequent  week; 
$3  per  day. 

License,  transfer  of,  50  cents  each. 

Livery  stables,  November  1,  $25  per  annum  for  10  stalls;  $2  each  additional  stall. 

Liquor  dealers,  retail,  November  1,  $800  per  annum. 

Liquor  dealers,  wholesale,  November  1,  $300  per  annum. 

Liquors,  brewers  or  manufacturers  of,  November  1,  $250  per  annum. 

*  Lumber,  inspection  of,  30  cents  per  1,000  feet  B.  M.     (W.  D.,  462.) 
'Market  dealers  of  all  kinds,  November  1,  $5  per  annum. 

Market  stalls,  schedule  of  monthly  rates  fixed  by  Commissioners,  as  follows: 
Eastern  Market— 

Butcher,  bacon,  butter,  and  miscellaneous  stands,  $4  each;  fish,  huckster, 

and  baker  stands,  $3  each.     (Orders  March  14,  1879;  April  28,  1894.) 
Western  Market — 

All  stands  except  8  dark  stands,  $5  each. 
Eight  dark  stands,  $2.50  each.     (Order  December  31,  1906.) 
Georgetown  Market — 

All  stands,  $5  each.     (Orders  of  December  1,  1894,  and  October  31,  1894.) 
Massage  establishments,  November  1,  $25  per  annum. 
Maturity  associations,  November  1,  $100  per  annum. 

*  Medical  examiners,  board  of,  examination  by,  $10.     (29  Stats.,  199.) 
Medicated  baths.     (See  Baths.) 

Mediums,  November  1,  $25  per  annum. 

Merry-go-rounds,  $12  per  week;  $10  each  subsequent  week;  $3  per  day. 
Note  brokers,  July  1,  $100  per  annum. 

Omnibuses,  July  1,  $6  per  annum,  one  animal;  $9  per  annum,  more  than  one  animal. 
Oyster  houses,  November  1,  $18  per  annum. 
Palmists,  November  1,  $25  per  annum. 

Passenger  transportation  lines,  November  1,  $6  per  annum  for  each  vehicle  not  exceed- 
ing 10  passengers;  $12  exceeding  10  passengers. 
Pawnbrokers,  November  1,  $100  per  annum. 
Peddlers,  April  1,  $25  per  annum. 

*  Pharmacy,  commissioners  of,  for  registration  without  examination,  $3;  with  exami- 
nation, $10.     (20  Stats.,  138.) 

Picnic  grounds,  November  1,  $100  per  annum;  $10  per  week;  $5  each  subsequent 

week;  $3  per  day. 
Plumbing  board,  examination  and  license  of  each  applicant  for  master  plumber's 

license,  $3.     (30  Stats.,  477.) 
Polo  grounds,  $20  per  week;  $5  per  day. 
Pool  rooms,  November  1,  $12  per  annum. 


172  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

Private  banks  or  bankers  (not  incorporated),  July  1,  $500  per  annum. 
Produce  dealers,  April  1,  $12  per  annum  for  each  vehicle. 

Public  school  tuition  of  nonresident  pupils:  High  school,  $43.79;  eighth  grade,  $30.42; 
seventh  grade,  $25.08;  sixth  grade,  $23.60;  fifth  grade,  $20.53;  fourth  grade,  $20; 
third  grade,  $17.27;  second  grade,  $16.42;  first  grade,  $15.26.     (30  Stats.,  1056; 
order  of  Commissioners,  September  20,  1899.) 
Race  tracks,  $20  per  week;  $5  per  day. 
Real  estate  brokers.     (See  Brokers,  real  estate.) 
Rectifiers.     (See  Distillers.) 
Restaurants,  November  1,  $18  per  annum. 
Russian  baths.     (See  Baths.) 

Secondhand  dealers  of  all  kinds,  November  1,  $40  per  annum. 
"Seeing  Washington  cars."     (See  Passenger  transportation  lines.) 
Shed  permits,  $1  each  shed.     (B.  R.,  sec.  31.) 
Shooting  galleries,  November  1,  $12  per  annum. 
Skating  rinks,  November  1,  $100  per  annum;  $10  per  week;  $5  each  subsequent  week; 

$3  per  day. 
Slot  machines,  November  1,  $2  per  annum,  each  machine;  $50  per  annum,  unlimited 

number. 

Soothsayers,  November  1,  $25  per  annum. 

Steam  engineers'  licenses  are  of  three  grades — first,  second,  and  third — the  fee  for 
each  being  $3.     Examination  before  board  of  engineers  is  required.     Licenses  are 
good  until  revoked  or  changed  to  higher  grade.     (Act  of  February  28,  1887.) 
Stock  exchange,  Washington,  July  1,  $500  per  annum. 
Surveyor's  fees: 

For  preparing  for  record  a  plat  of  the  proposed  subdivision  of  any  recorded  lot 

or  part  of  lot,  50  cents  for  each  lot  in  the  new  subdivision. 

For  preparing  for  record  a  plat  of  a  proposed  subdivision  containing  one  or  more 
squares,  not  more  than  $20  shall  be  charged  for  the  subdivision  of  each  entire 
square. 

For  recording  the  above  plats,  after  approval  by  the  Commissioners  of  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia,  $2.50  for  each  square  and  $1.50  for  any  lot  or.  part  of  a  square. 
For  furnishing  a  copy  of  the  plat  and  record  of  any  square  or  part  of  square,  $2.50. 
For  examining  any  plat  and  calculating  the  area  of  any  proposed  sublot,  25  cents. 
For  preparing  plats  showing  lines  of  any  proposed  minor  street  or  alley  to  accom- 
pany petition  for  condemnation,  $5  for  each  plat. 

For  surveying  and  marking  upon  the  ground  the  boundaries  of  any  lot  within 
the  city  of  Washington  east  of  Rock  Creek,  $3;  within  the  city  of  Washington 
west  of  Rock  Creek,  $4;  in  the  District  of  Columbia  outside  of  the  city  of  Wash- 
ington in  any  subdivision  recorded  since  1888  and  the  lines  of  which  are  duly 
marked  by  stones  approved  by  the  surveyor  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  $5. 
The  above  shall  include  a  certified  plat  of  the  survey  for  the  property  owner  or 
applicant. 

For  surveying  and  marking  upon  the  ground  the  boundaries  of  any  piece  of 
ground  in  the  county  of  Washington  not  contained  in  a  subdivision  recorded 
and  marked  as  stated  in  the  previous  paragraph,  $20  per  day  for  each  day 
occupied  in  the  field  work  and  $10  per  day  for  each  day  occupied  in  comput- 
ing lines,  areas,  and  other  office  work. 

For  surveying  and  ascertaining  the  position  of  walls  of  any  building  with  respect 
to  the  lines  as  laid  down  on  plat  of  record  in  the  surveyor's  office  or  according 
to  the  description  contained  in  deed,  $5  if  building  stands  on  a  single  lot;  $7.50 
if  building  stands  on  two  lots,  and  $10  if  building  stands  on  three  or  more  lots. 
For  examining  the  location  of  the  walls  of  any  building  when  the  same  shall 
have  reached  a  height  of  not  more  than  one  foot  above  the  footings,  $1. 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  173 

Surveyor's  fees — Continued. 

For  any  work  not  specifically  described  above  the  actual  cost  of  labor  and  mate- 
rial will  be  charged. 

No  work  will  be  begun  by  the  surveyor  for  any  private  parties  until  the  actual 
estimated  cost  of  the  same  has  been  deposited  with  the  collector  of  taxes  and 
his  receipt  recorded  in  the  office  of  the  surveyor  of  the  District  of  Columbia. 
(Orders  of  Commissioners,  March  23,  1895,  and  February  7,  1902.) 

Tax  certificates,  50  cents  each.     (27  Stats.,  37.) 

Theaters,  November  1,  $100  per  annum,  $20  per  week,  $10  less  than  one  week. 

Ticket  brokers,  railroad.     (See  Brokers,  ticket.) 

Tournaments.     (See  Race  tracks.) 

Turkish  baths.     (See  Baths.) 

Transfers  of  licenses,  50  cents  each. 

Undertakers,  November  1,  $25  per  annum. 

Vaults  under  streets,  $1  each  vault.     (B.  R.,  sec.  31.) 

Vehicles  for  hire,  July  1,  $6  per  annum  one  animal,  $9  more  than  one,  $9  horseless 
or  motor. 

Victuallers,  November  1,  $18  per  annum. 

Wagon-making  establishments.     (See  Carriage-making  establishments.) 

Walls,  party,  measuring,  $5  each.     (B.  R.,  sec.  31.) 

Washington  Stock  Exchange,  July  1,  $500  per  annum. 

Water  rents,  shedule  of: 

DOMESTIC    RATES. 

The  rate  for  domestic  purposes  shall  be  charged  according  to  stories  and  front 
feet.  On  all  tenements  two  stories  high,  with  a  front  width  of  16  feet  or  less, 
$4.50  per  annum.  For  each  additional  front  foot  or  fraction  thereof  greater 
than  one-half,  30  cents. 

NOTE. — In  cases  where  the  frontage  of  a  house  is  greater  than  the  depth  the  rent 
will  be  based  upon  the  less  dimension.  In  the  case  of  houses  situated  on  tri- 
angular or  irregular  lots  the  rent  will  be  based  upon  the  mean  depth,  or  mean 
frontage,  depending  upon  which  is  less. 

For  each  additional  story  or  part  thereof,  one-third  of  the  charges  as  computed 
above. 

NOTE. — The  word  "story"  shall  be  held  to  include  basements,  cellars,  and  attics 
containing  space  used  or  fitted  out  for  use  for  domestic  purposes,  unless  such 
space  be  used  exclusively  for  kitchens,  laundries,  storage  rooms,  or  bath  rooms. 

METER    RATES. 

The  rate  to  be  charged  for  water  supplied  through  meters  shall  be  3  cents  a  hundred 
cubic  feet. 

The  supply  of  water  shall  be  determined  by  meter  to  all  manufacturing  establish- 
ments, hotels,  swimming  baths,  bottling  establishments,  gas  tanks,  railroad 
yards,  steamboats  and  wharves,  brickyards,  and  other  places  requiring  a  large 
quantity,  including  all  premises  using  fountains  or  automatic  fixtures  and  all 
premises  for  business  purposes  on  which  the  water  rent,  according  to  the  fol- 
lowing schedule  of  rates,  is  $25  or  more  per  annum.  The  listing  of  certain 
premises  on  that  schedule  does  not  exempt  them  from  the  requirements  of  the 
law  with  regard  to  the  use  of  meters. 

In  case  of  premises  required  by  law  to  be  supplied  with  water  by  meter  the  sup- 
ply of  water  to  any  portion  thereof  for  any  purpose  shall  be  determined  by  meter. 

A  minimum  rate  of  $4.50  will  be  charged  against  all  consumers  supplied  with 
water  by  meters. 


174  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

SPECIAL    BUSINESS    AND    MISCELLANEOUS    RATES. 

In  every  case  where  dwelling  houses  or  tenements  are  occupied  also  for  business 
purposes,  or  vice  versa,  the  regular  charge  for  domestic  purposes  according 
to  the  above  rates  shall  be  made,  and  in  addition  thereto  the  special  business 
rate  as  hereinafter  specified. 

NOTE. — In  cases  where  a  story  is  used  entirely  for  business  purposes  it  will  not 
be  reckoned  in  the  charge  for  domestic  purposes.  Special  and  miscellaneous 
business  shall  be  charged  at  the  following  rates,  viz: 

Apartment  houses  having  two  or  more  tenements: 

For  each  aud  every  flat  or  suite  of  connecting  rooms,  having  the  water  facilities 
of  a  dwelling  house,  $4.50. 

Armories,  according  to  fixtures. 

Bakeries,  from  $1  to  the  amount  requiring  meter  ($25). 

Barbershops,  first  chair,  $3;  each  additional  chair,  $1.50. 

Bar  rooms  and  restaurants  from  $15  to  the  amount  requiring  meter  ($25). 

Billiard  and  pool  rooms,  from  $1  to  the  amount  requiring  meter  ($25). 

Boarding  schools,  according  to  the  number  of  fixtures. 

Club  houses,  according  to  the  number  of  fixtures. 

Club  rooms,  $3  per  room. 

Colleges  (law,  medical,  business,  etc.),  according  to  the  number  of  fixtures. 

Cows,  25  cents  each. 

Dye  houses,  $1  to  the  amount  requiring  meter  ($25). 

Eating  houses  and  lunch  rooms,  from  $1  to  the  amount  requiring  meter  ($25). 

Fixtures  in  business  establishments,  not  otherwise  listed,  $3  for  each  fixture. 

Florists,  $1  to  the  amount  requiring  meter  ($25). 

Gas  engines,  $4  per  horsepower. 

Horses,  private,  $1.50  each,  said  sum  to  include  water  for  washing  carriages. 

Horses  for  all  other  purposes,  75  cents  each. 

Laundries,  $1  to  the  amount  requiring  meter  ($25). 

Machinery  using  water,  according  to  the  rate  for  stationary  engines  and  boilers. 

Mills,  $5;  machinery  extra,  according  to  the  rate  for  stationary  engines. 

Motor  vehicles,  other  than  bicycles  or  tricycles,  75  cents  each. 

Office  buildings,  according  to  the  number  of  fixtures. 

Offices,  $3  each. 

Printing  houses,  from  $1  to  $10 ;  machinery  in  same  using  water  shall  be  charged 
in  addition  thereto  according  to  the  rate  for  stationary  engines. 

Photograph  galleries,  $1  to  amount  requiring  meter  ($25). 

Public  baths,  $4  for  each  tub. 

Stationary  engines,  $3  per  horsepower;  boilers  without  engines,  $1.75  per  horse- 
power. 

Stores,  shops,  confectioneries,  dairies,  and  warehouses,  $1  to  the  amount  requiring 
meter  ($25). 

Street  washers,  where  parties  use  same  and  water  is  not  taken  in  the  house,  shall 
be  charged  at  the  rate  of  from  $3  to  $10  per  annum;  exterior  fountains,  street 
washers  and  other  hose  connections  may  be  used  only  between  the  hours  of  5 
o'clock  and  8  o'clock  p.  m.,  and  5  o'clock  and  8  o'clock  a.  m. 

Slaughterhouses,  from  $5  to  the  amount  requiring  meter  ($25). 

Stables,  domestic  purposes  over  same,  $3.50. 

The  water  registrar  is  hereby  authorized  to  grant  permission  to  occupants  of  such 
premises  as  have  no  water  supply  of  their  own,  upon  written  permission  from  an  adja- 
cent water  taker,  to  use  the  water,  upon  the  payment  of  the  water  rent  as  stipulated 
herein. 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT   OF    COLUMBIA.  175 

Rebates. — That  hereafter  whenever  the  owner  or  occupant  of  any  premises  shall 
make  request  of  the  water  registrar  in  writing  to  have  the  water  cut  off  from  such  prem- 
ises, before  the  beginning  of  the  fiscal  year,  for  the  reason  that  the  said  premises  are  to 
be  closed  for  a  certain  period,  and  shall,  upon  his  return,  request  the  water  registrar 
in  writing  to  turn  on  the  water,  the  water  rent  against  the  said  premises  shall  be  counted 
only  from  the  date  the  water  is  turned  on,  instead  of  from  the  beginning  of  the  fiscal 
year. 

Transfers. — When  tenants  move  from  one  house  to  another  so  much  of  the  water 
rent  paid  by  the  said  tenant  on  the  premises  vacated  as  covers  the  unexpired  portion 
of  the  fiscal  year  may,  on  application  to  the  water  office  be  credited  on  the  water  rent 
due  on  the  new  premises:  Provided,  That  the  application  for  such  transfer  be  accom- 
panied by  the  receipted  bill  for  premises  vacated. 

In  charging  business  establishments  for  using  Potomac  water  not  supplied  through 
meters,  no  allowance  or  deduction  from  the  schedule  rates  shall  be  made  on  account 
of  water  claimed  to  be  supplied  from  wells.  Reserve  boilers  and  machinery  shall  be 
charged  for  at  full  schedule  rates. 

All  water  required  for  purposes  which  are  not  specified  in  the  foregoing  schedule 
shall  be  paid  for  at  such  rates  as  may  be  fixed  by  the  Commissioners. 

All  annual  water  rents  are  due  and  payable  in  advance  on  the  1st  day  of  July  in 
each  year. 

All  charges  for  specific  supplies  and  for  fractional  parts  of  a  year  are  due  and  payable 
in  advance  of  the  use  of  the  water.  In  all  cases  of  failure  to  pay  the  annual  water  rent 
within  thirty  days  after  same  is  due  and  payable,  and  charges  for  specific  supplies 
or  fractional  parts  of  the  year  in  advance  of  the  use  of  the  water,  the  supply  shall  be 
cut  off,  and  the  flow  not  again  restored  until  the  water  rent  is  paid,  as  also  a  penalty 
of  $2  and  the  actual  expense,  if  any,  incurred  by  the  water  department  in  cutting  the 
street  for  the  purpose  of  shutting  off  and  restoring  the  flow  of  water. 

All  persons  taking  water  are  hereby  required  to  keep  their  service  pipes  and  fixtures 
connected  with  such  service  pipes  in  good  condition  and  repair,  and  protected  from 
frost,  at  their  own  expense;  to  prevent  all  unnecessary  waste  of  water,  and  keep  the 
trench  in  which  their  service  pipe  was  laid,  from  the  main  to  the  building  line,  in 
good  order  and  condition. 

The  hose  shall  not  be  used  in  the  avenues  or  streets  to  wash  off  carriages,  omnibuses 
or  other  vehicles,  or  for  watering  or  washing  horses.  Caps  upon  the  said  pavement 
or  street  washers  must,  when  the  washers  are  not  in  use  be  kept  screwed  securely 
down,  and  not  project  above  the  foot  pavement. 

The  Commissioners  reserve  the  right,  whenever  they  may  deem  it  necessary  in 
order  to  furnish  the  supply  necessary  for  domestic  purposes,  to  cause  the  flow  of  water 
to  be  discontinued  for  all  other  purposes. 

The  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are  hereby  authorized  to  furnish 
Potomac  water  without  charge  to  orphan  asylums  and  charity  schools,  and  such  insti- 
tutions as  receive  annual  appropriations  from  Congress,  to  an  amount  to  be  fixed  in 
each  case  by  said  Commissioners,  not  to  exceed  the  rate  of  100  gallons  per  average 
capita  of  inmates  per  diem;  and  for  all  water  used  beyond  such  an  amount  the  insti- 
tution shall  be  charged  at  the  prevailing  rate  for  the  use  of  water  in  the  District. 
They  are  further  authorized  to  furnish  Potomac  water  without  charge  to  churches  to 
an  amount  to  be  fixed  in  each  case  by  the  Commissioners;  any  amount  used  in  excess 
to  be  charged  as  hereinbefore  provided.  (33  Stat.  pt.  1,  742,  Feb.  23,  1905.) 

Whenever  the  owner  of  any  premises  shall  make  request  of  the 
water  registrar  in  writing,  on  or  before  the  beginning  of  the  fiscal 
year,  to  have  the  water  cut  off  from  such  premises,  before  the  begin- 
ning of  the  said  fiscal  year,  for  the  reason  that  the  premises  are  to  be 

74986— 0:> 1-2 


176  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

closed  for  a  certain  period,  and  shall  upon  his  return  request  the 
water  registrar  in  writing  to  turn  on  the  water,  the  water  rent  against 
said  premises  shall  be  counted  only  from  the  date  that  the  water  is 
turned  on,  instead  of  from  the  beginning  of  the  fiscal  year.  (Order 
November  1,  1900.) 

If  any  person  or  persons  shall  remove  the  cover  from  any  stopcock 
box  or  turn  on  or  off  the  supply  of  water  by  means  of  said  stopcock 
on  the  service  pipe  or  otherwise,  without  the  authority  of  the  water 
registrar,  such  person  or  persons  shall  be  liable  to  a  fine  of  not  less 
than  $10  nor  more  than  $50  for  each  offense. 

If  any  occupant  of  premises  into  which  has  been  introduced  the 
water  shall  permit  the  same  to  run  or  waste  unnecessarily  from  any 
hydrant,  cock,  jet,  street  washer,  or  other  fixture,  or  to  flow  from 
his  fountain  into  adjacent  premises  and  there  used,  or  to  be  taken 
from  or  used  by  any  person  other  than  said  occupant  or  a  member  or 
visitor  of  his  family,  except  in  case  of  fire;  or  if  any  hydrant,  jet, 
cock,  street  washer,  or  other  fixture  be  found  leaking,  and  said  occu- 
pant, owner,  or  agent  of  the  premises  shall  refuse  or  neglect  to  have 
the  necessary  repairs  made  without  delay ;  or  refuse  admission  to  the 
water  registrar  or  other  authorized  agent  of  the  Commissioners  into 
his  premises  when  in  the  official  discharge  of  his  duties,  the  person  so 
offending  shall  pay  a  fine  of  not  less  than  $5  nor  more  than  $30  for 
each  offense,  and  the  supply  of  water  shall  be  stopped  from  said 
premises  until  satisfactory  assurance  is  given  the  water  registrar  that 
the  like  case  will  not  occur  again. 

Weights  and  measures,  for  testing  and  sealing,  as  follows: 

Dry  measure,  over  half  bushel $0. 25 

Dry  measure,  half  bushel  or  less: 

1  to  10,  inclusive  (each) 10 

1  to  25,  inclusive  (each) 09 

1  to  50,  inclusive  (each) 08 

1  to  100,  inclusive  (each) 07J 

Ice  cream  measure: 

1  to  50,  inclusive  (each) 10 

1  to  100,  inclusive  (each) 08 

1  to  200,  inclusive  (each) 1 07 

200  or  over  (each) 06 

Liquid  measures  over  1  gallon  (each) : 25 

Liquid  measures,  1  gallon  or  less: 

1  to  10  measures,  inclusive  (each) 10 

1  to  25  measures,  inclusive  (each) 09 

1  to  50  measures,  inclusive  (each) 08 

1  to  100  measures,  inclusive  (each) 07£ 

Milk  can,  1  gallon  or  more: 

1  to  50  cans,  inclusive  (each) 25 

1  to  100  cans,  inclusive  (each) 20 

Over  100  cans  (each) 15 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT   OF    COLUMBIA.  177 

Milk  bottles  and  jars,  glass  (each  100  bottles) $0.  50 

Scales,  coal,  semiannually 2.  00 

Scales,  counter,  semiannually 25 

Scales,  counter,  platform,  over  200  pounds,  semiannually 1. 00 

Scales,  counter,  platform,  under  200  pounds,  semiannually 50 

Scales,  hay,  semiannually 2. 00 

Scales,  platform,  semiannually 1.  00 

Scales,  potato,  semiannually 25 

Scales,  railroad,  large,  semiannually  (first  10  tons) 2. 00 

Scales,  railroad,  large  (each  ton  over  10) 25 

Scales,  wagon,  semiannually 2. 00 

Spring  balance,  semiannually  after  July  1,  1903 25 

Weights,  sealing  of  (each) 10 

Yard  measures  sealed,  annually  (each) 10 

(28  Stats.,  811.     Orders  of  Commissioners,  April  23,  1896;  August  16,  1897; 

July  29,  1901.) 

Washington  Market  Company.     Franchise  rental  per  annum,  $7,500. 
Wharf  for  sale  of  fish.     (See  Fish  wharf.) 
Wharf  property  along  James  Creek  Canal,  rent  of,  8  per  cent  per  annum  on 

estimated  value.     (Order  of  Commissioners  of  November  5,  1890.) 
Wharves  on  Potomac  River,  rental  of. 
Wood,  inspection  of,  9  cents  per  cord.     (W.  D.,  276.) 

AUTHORITY   TO    MAKE    PUBLIC    VEHICLE    RATES. 

The  Commissioners  are  directed  to  prepare  and  change  from  time 
to  time,  a  reasonable  scale  of  charges  by  cabs,  taxicabs,  and  public 
vehicles,  for  the  transportation  of  passengers,  and  to  prescribe  penal- 
ties for  violation  thereof.  (D.  C.  appropriation  act,  March  3,  1909.) 

EXCISE    BOARD. 

The  excise  board  determine  to  whom  license  to  sell  intoxicating 
liquors  by  wholesale  or  retail  shall  be  issued.  Their  action  is  regu- 
lated by  law  and  rules  and  regulations  which  they  are  authorized 
by  law  to  make.  (See  p.  144.) 

This  board  consists  of  the  assessor  as  ex  officio  chairman,  and  the 
three  permanent  assistant  assessors,  who  are  designated  by  the 
assessor  to  assess  real  property,  and  compose  said  board.  (Act 
July  1,  1902.) 

For  the  license  fees  for  selling  such  liquors  see  "Methods  of  taxa- 
tion" (p.  171). 

AUDITOR'S  OFFICE. 

The  auditor  has  general  oversight  of  the  financial  an" airs  of  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia.  He  passes  upon  all  accounts  affecting  the  general 
revenues,  which  are  derived  from  taxes,  licenses,  fines  in  the  police 
and  criminal  courts,  fees  from  justices  of  the  peace,  market  rentals, 
and  minor  miscellaneous  sources,  together  with  those  relating  to  the 
water  fund  and  the  various  special  and  trust  funds.  He  is  also 
required  by  law  to  audit  all  disbursements  made  wholly  or  in  part 
from  District  revenues,  unless  the  acts  of  Congress  appropriating 


178  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

therefor  specifically  provide  otherwise,  as  in  the  case  of  the  sinking 
fund,  the  expenditures  of  which  are  under  the  control  of  the  Treas- 
urer ot  the  United  States,  ex  officio  commissioner  of  the  sinking  fund; 
to  prepare  and  countersign  all  checks  issued  by  the  disbursing  officer, 
to  render  monthly  to  the  Auditor  for  the  State  and  other  Depart- 
ments detailed  statements,  with  accompanying  vouchers,  of  all  ex- 
penditures made  by  the  disbursing  officer,  duly  certified  by  the  Com- 
missioners of  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  to  keep  account  of  all 
obligations  against  appropriations. 

DISBURSEMENTS. 

All  disbursements  of  District  moneys,  except  where  otherwise 
specifically  provided  by  law,  as  those  for  the  sinking  fund,  which  are 
made  by  the  Treasurer  of  the  United  States,  ex  officio  commissioner 
of  that  fund,  are  made  by  the  disbursing  officer  upon  claims  or 
accounts  audited  and  approved  by  the  auditor  of  the  District  of 
Columbia. 

The  disbursing  officer  is  appointed  by  the  Commissioners  of  the 
District  of  Columbia,  and  gives  bond  to  the  United  States  in  the  sum 
of  $50,000,  conditioned  for  the  faithful  performance  of  the  duties  of 
his  office  in  the  disbursing  and  accounting,  according  to  law,  for  all 
moneys  of  the  United  States  and  of  the  District  of  Columbia  that 
come  into  his  hands;  which  bond  must  be  approved  by  the  Commis- 
sioners and  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury  and  be  filed  in  the  office  of 
the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury.  Advances  in  money,  for  which  he 
must  account,  are  made  to  him  from  the  United  States  Treasury  on 
the  requisition  of  the  Commissioners,  and  his  checks  for  disburse- 
ments must  be  countersigned  by  the  auditor. 

But  in  order  to  further  insure  accuracy,  the  organic  law  requires 
that  the  accounts  of  said  Commissioners  and  the  tax  collectors  and  all 
other  officers  required  to  account  shall  be  also  settled  and  adjusted  by 
the  accounting  officers  of  the  Treasury  Department  of  the  United 
States.  (20  Stats.,  105.)  This  auditing  falls  within  the  purview  of 
the  Auditor  for  the  State  and  other  Departments,  subject  to  review 
by  the  Comptroller  of  the  Treasury. 

FISCAL    YEAR. 

The  fiscal  year  begins  with  July  1  and  terminates  with  the  30th  of 
the  succeeding  June. 

SINKING    FUND. 

The  management  of  the  funded  debt  of  the  District  is  vested  by 
law  in  the  Treasurer  of  the  United  States.  The  sinking  fund  of  this 
debt  is  paid  by  the  United  States  and  the  District  of  Columbia  in 
equal  parts. 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  179 

On  December  31, 1908,  the  funded  debt  amounted  to  $10,117,730.18, 
all  but  $1,080.18  of  which  was  in  3.65  per  cent  bonds.  The  amount 
of  these  bonds  issued  to  that  date  was  $14,997,300,  or  within  $2,700 
of  the  limit  fixed  by  law.  (21  Stats.,  286.) 

PROPOSALS    FOB    MUNICIPAL    WORK. 

When  any  repairs  of  streets,  avenues,  alleys,  or  sewers  within  the 
District  of  Columbia  are  to  be  made,  or  when  new  pavements  are  to 
be  substituted  in  place  of  those  worn  out,  new  ones  laid,  or  new 
streets  opened,  sewers  built,  or  any  works  the  total  cost  of  which 
shall  exceed  the  sum  of  $1,000,  notice  must  be  given  in  one  newspaper 
in  Washington,  and  if  the  total  cost  shall  exceed  $5,000  then  in  one 
newspaper  in  each  of  the  cities  of  New  York,  Philadelphia,  and  Balti- 
more, also,  for  one  week,  for  proposals,  with  full  specifications  as  to 
material  for  the  whole  or  any  portion  of  the  works  proposed  to  be 
done.  (20  Stats.,  105.) 

The  lowest  responsible  proposal  for  the  kind  and  character  of  pave- 
ment or  other  work  which  the  Commissioners  shall  determine  upon 
must  in  all  cases  be  accepted,  but  the  Commissioners  have  the  right, 
in  their  discretion,  to  reject  all  such  proposals.  (Ib.) 

The  Commissioners  also  invite  proposals  for  all  kinds  of  work, 
material,  supplies,  and  other  purchases  involving  any  considerable 
cost,  and  whenever  in  their  judgment  the  public  interests  will  be 
best  subserved  thereby. 

CONTRACTS. 

Work  capable  of  being  executed  under  a  single  contract  shall  not 
be  subdivided  so  as  to  reduce  the  sum  of  money  to  be  paid  therefor 
to  less  than  $1,000  (ib.);  nor  to  less  than  $500  (34  Stats.,  pt.  1,  546). 

All  contracts  for  the  construction,  improvement,  alteration,  or 
repairs  of  the  streets,  avenues,  highways,  alleys,  gutters,  sewers,  and 
all  work  of  like  nature  must  be  made  and  entered  into  only  by  and 
with  the  official  unanimous  consent  of  the  Commissioners  of  the 
District.  (Ib.,  106.) 

The  Commissioners  may  make  separate  contracts  for  materials 
and  for  labor  in  executing  public  works..  (22  Stats.,  125.) 

All  contracts  shall  be  copied  into  a  book  kept  for  that  purpose  and 
be  signed  by  the  said  Commissioners,  and  no  contract  involving  an 
expenditure  of  more  than  $100  shall  be  valid  until  recorded  and 
signed  as  aforesaid.  (20  Stats.,  106.) 

Pursuant  to  an  order  dated  August  2,  1878,  all  contracts  are  pre- 
pared by  and  recorded  by  the  Engineer  Commissioner. 

The  Comptroller  of  the  Treasury  orally  advised  the  Commissioners 
that  books  composed  of  one  of  each  of  the  original  contracts  bound 


180  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

together  would  meet  the  requirements  of  this  law  as  to  copying  con- 
tracts into  a  book.  This  secures  accuracy  and  also  obviates  the  labor 
of  transcribing  them,  which  involves  the  copying  of  a  large  amount 
of  printed  matter  included  in  the  forms. 

OFFICERS    AND    CONTRACTORS'    BONDS. 

Good  and  sufficient  bonds  to  the  United  States,  in  a  penal  sum  not 
less  than  25  per  centum  of  the  estimated  cost  of  work  or  material,  with 
sureties  to  be  approved  by  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of 
Columbia,  shall  be  required  from  all  contractors,  guaranteeing  that 
the  terms  of  their  contracts  shall  be  strictly  and  faithfully  performed 
to  the  satisfaction  of  and  acceptance  by  said  Commissioners.  (20 
Stats.,  106;  33  Stat.,  pt.  1,  704.)  A  bond  is  not  necessary  with 
contracts  for  not  more  than  $500.  (34  Stat.,  pt.  1,  546.) 

Neither  of  said  Commissioners,  nor  any  officer  whatsoever  of  the 
District  of  Columbia,  shall  be  accepted  as  surety  upon  any  bond 
required  to  be  given  to  the  District  of  Columbia;  nor  shall  any  con- 
tractor be  accepted  as  surety  for  any  officer  or  other  contractor  in  said 
District.  (Ib.,  103.) 

BIENNIAL    EXAMINATION    OF    OFFICIAL    BONDS. 

Every  officer  required  by  law  to  take  and  approve  official  bonds 
shall  cause  the  same  to  be  examined  at  least  once  every  two  years  for 
the  purpose  of  ascertaining  the  sufficiency  of  the  sureties  thereon ;  and 
every  officer  having  power  to  fix  the  amount  of  an  official  bond  shall 
examine  it  to  ascertain  the  sufficiency  of  the  amount  thereof  and 
approve  or  fix  said  amount  at  least  once  in  two  years,  and  as  much 
oftener  as  he  may  deem  it  necessary.  (20  Stats.,  807.) 

RENEWAL    OF    OFFICIAL    BONDS. 

Every  officer  whose  duty  it  is  to  take  and  approve  official  bonds 
shall  cause  all  such  bonds  to  be  renewed  every  four  years  after  their 
dates,  or  oftener  if  he  deem  such  action  necessary.  In  his  discretion 
a  new  bond  may  be  waived  for  the  period  of  service  of  a  bonded  officer 
after  the  expiration  of  a  four-year  term  of  service,  pending  the 
appointment  and  qualification  of  his  successor.  The  nonperformance 
of  any  of  said  requirements  on  the  part  of  any  official  of  the  Govern- 
ment shall  not  be  held  to  affect  in  any  respect  the  liability  of  principal 
or  sureties  on  any  bond  made  or  to  be  made  to  the  United  States,  and 
the  liability  of  the  principal  and  sureties  on  all  official  bonds  shall  con- 
tinue and  cover  the  period  of  service  ensuing  until  the  appointment 
and  qualification  of  the  successor  of  the  principal ;  nor  shall  anything 
in  the  foregoing  be  construed  to  repeal  or  modify  section  3836  of  the 
He  vised  Statutes  of  the  United  States.  (Ib.) 


GOVERNMENT  OF  THE  DISTRICT  OF  COLUMBIA.  181 

TERM  OF  CONTRACTORS'  LIABILITY. 

Contractors  shall  keep  new  pavements  or  other  new  works  in  repair 
for  a  term  of  five  years  from  the  date  of  the  completion  of  their  con- 
tracts. (20  Stats.,  106;  33  Stat.,  pt.  1,  704.) 

RETENTS    FROM    CONTRACTORS. 

That  on  all  contracts  made  by  the  District  of  Columbia  for  con- 
struction work  there  shall  be  held  a  retent  of  ten  per  centum  of  the 
cost  of  such  construction  work  as  a  guaranty  fund  to  keep  the  work 
done  under  such  contracts  in  repair,  and  that  the  terms  of  such  con- 
tracts shall  be  strictly  and  faithfully  performed.  On  contracts  for 
the  construction  of  asphalt,  tar,  brick,  cement,  or  stone  pavements 
the  retent  shall  be  held  for  a  term  of  five  years  from  the  date  of  com- 
pletion of  the  contract.  On  contracts  for  the  construction  of  bridges 
and  sewers  the  retent  shall  be  held  for  a  term  of  one  year  from  the  date 
of  completion  of  the  contract.  On  contracts  for  the  construction 
of  buildings,  and  other  contracts  for  construction  work,  the  retent 
shall  be  held  until  the  completion  of  the  work.  All  retents  for  one 
year  or  more  shall  be  deposited  with  the  Treasurer  of  the  United 
States  as  now  required  by  law.  (31  Stat.,  pt.  1,  94.)  Extended  to 
cover  all  contracts  for  "  buildings  and  other  contracts  for  construc- 
tion work."  (34  Stat.,  pt.  1,  929.) 

PUBLIC    SCHOOLS. 

The  supreme  court  of  the  District  of  Columbia  is  authorized  to 
appoint  nine  persons,  bona  fide  residents  of  the  District  of  Columbia, 
and  who  have  been  such  for  five  years  immediately  preceding  their 
appointment,  to  constitute  a  board  of  education,  and  whose  terni  of 
office  is  three  years,  except  that  the  terms  of  the  persons  first 
appointed  terminate  as  follows:  Three  for  one  year,  three  for  two 
years,  and  three  for  three  years,  to  serve  without  compensation. 

The  board  has  complete  jurisdiction  over  all  administrative  matters 
connected  with  the  public  schools  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  except 
that  all  expenditures  of  public  funds  for  such  school  purposes  are 
made  and  accounted  for  as  now  provided  by  law  under  the  direction 
and  control  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia.  The 
board  makes  all  needful  rules  and  regulations  which  may  be  proper 
for  the  government  and  control  of  schools,  and  makes  annual  report 
to  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  who  transmit  the 
same  to  Congress,  of  the  condition  and  operations  of  said  schools, 
and  the  sanitary  and  structural  condition  of  all  buildings  in  use,  as 
well  as  those  in  course  of  construction,  with  recommendations  as  to 
needed  changes. 


182  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

The  board  has  power  to  appoint  one  superintendent  for  all  the  pub- 
lic schools  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  two  assistant  superintendents — 
one  of  whom,  under  the  direction  of  the  superintendent,  has  charge  of 
schools  for  colored  children ;  and  has  power  to  employ  and  remove  all 
teachers,  officers,  and  other  employees  connected  with  the  public 
schools  not  already  specified.  Graduates  of  the  normal  schools  have 
preference  in  all  cases  when  appointments  of  teachers  for  the  grade 
schools  are  to  be  made.  The  superintendent  shall  have  the  direction 
of  and  supervision  in  all  matters  pertaining  to  the  instruction  in  all 
the  schools  under  the  board  of  education. 

Twelve  medical  inspectors  of  public  schools,  four  of  whom  shall  be 
of  the  colored  race,  at  $500  each,  shall  be  appointed  by  the  Commis- 
sioners only  after  competitive  examination,  and  shall  have  had  at  least 
five  years'  experience  in  the  practice  of  medicine  in  the  District  of 
Columbia,  and  shall  perform  their  duties  under  the  direction  of  the 
health  officer  and  according  to  rules  formulated  from  time  to  time  by 
him,  which  shall  be  subject  to  the  approval  of  the  board  of  education, 
and  the  Commissioners. 

The  board  annually  sends  to  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of 
Columbia  an  estimate  in  detail  of  the  amount  of  money  required  for 
the  public  schools  for  the  ensuing  year,  which  the  Commissioners 
include  in  their  annual  estimate  of  appropriations  for  the  District  of 
Columbia,  with  such  recommendations  as  they  deem  proper.  (31 
Stats.,  564.) 

For  convenience  of  administration  the  schools  are  classified  into 
divisions,  each  of  which  includes  a  certain  number  of  schools  and  is 
under  the  immediate  surveillance  of  a  separate  supervising  principal; 
but  these  divisions  have  no  definite  geographical  boundaries. 

The  maximum  number  of  pupils  enrolled  in  the  public  shools  of  the 
District  of  Columbia  for  1908  was  57,013.  The  white  and  colored 
pupils  are  taught  in  separate  schools. 

PAY   OF    OFFICERS. 

The  pay  of  officers  shall  be  as  follows:  The  superintendent,  $5,000; 
the  assistant  superintendents,  $3,000  each;  director  of  intermediate 
instruction,  supervisor  of  manual  training,  and  supervising  prin- 
cipals, $2,200  per  annum,  with  an  increase  of  $100  per  year  for  five 
years. 

Director  of  intermediate  instruction,  supervisor  of  manual  training, 
and  supervising  principals  who  may  be  hereafter  appointed  shall  be 
appointed  at  the  minimum  salary  provided  unless  the  said  salary  is 
less  than  that  received  at  the  time  of  his  appointment. 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  183 

When  a  teacher  is  on  trial  or  being  investigated  he  or  she  shall 
have  the  right  to  be  attended  by  counsel  and  by  at  least  one  friend  of 
his  or  her  selection. 

NONRESIDENT   PUPILS. 

Pupils  shall  not  be  admitted  to  nor  taught  free  of  charge  in  the 
public  schools  of  the  District  of  Columbia  who  do  not  reside  in  said 
District,  or  whose  parents  do  not  reside  or  are  not  engaged  in  busi- 
ness or  public  duties  therein:  Provided,  That  such  pupils  may  be 
admitted  to  and  taught  in  said  public  schools  on  payment  of  such 
amount,  to  be  fixed  by  the  board  of  school  trustees,  with  the  approval 
of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District,  as  will  cover  the  expense  of  their 
tuition  and  cost  of  text-books  and  school  supplies  used  by  them;  and 
all  payments  hereunder  shall  be  paid  into  the  Treasury,  one-half  to  the 
credit  of  the  United  States  and  one-half  to  the  credit  of  the  District  of 
Columbia. 

INDUSTRIAL    HOME    SCHOOLS. 

The  institution  for  white  children  is  situated  on  the  east  side  of  the 
Tennallytown  road,  a  short  distance  north  of  the  city  of  Washington. 

Its  object  is  to  provide  for  the  care  and  elemental  instruction  in 
handicraft,  in  connection  with  the  ordinary  mental  studies,  of  children 
between  the  ages  of  five  and  fifteen  years  who,  from  indigency  or 
neglect,  would  otherwise  be  deprived  of  such  care  and  instruction. 
(29  Stats.,  410.)  It  is  managed  by  a  board  of  trustees  appointed  by 
the  Commissioners. 

The  home  school  for  colored  children  is  at  Blue  Plains,  and  managed 
by  a  superintendent  provided  for  by  annual  appropriation. 

PUBLIC   LIBRARY. 

This  institution  is  located  on  Mount  Vernon  Square,  which  belongs 
to  the  United  States,  but  the  building  was  erected  at  a  cost  of  $350,000, 
at  the  expense  of  Mr.  Andrew  Carnegie,  whose  action  in  the  matter 
was  inspired  by  a  suggestion  made  to  him  by  Hon.  Brainard  H. 
Warner. 

It  is  managed  by  a  board  of  trustees  appointed  by  the  Commis- 
sioners. 

BOARD    OF    CHARITIES. 

A  Board  of  Charities,  to  consist  of  five  members,  residents  of  the 
District,  shall  be  appointed  by  the  President  of  the  United  States,  by 
and  with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the  Senate,  each  for  a  term  of  three 
years,  but  in  such  manner  that  the  terms  of  not  more  than  two  of  them 


184  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

shall  expire  in  any  one  or  the  same  year.  The  members  of  said  board 
shall  serve  without  compensation.  No  member  shall  serve  as  trustee 
or  other  administrative  officer  of  any  institution  subject  to  the  visita- 
tion of  the  said  board.  The  board  shall  elect  a  president  and  vice- 
president  from  among  its  own  members,  and  shall  appoint  a  secretary 
and  such  other  officers,  inspectors,  and  clerks  as  it  may  deem  proper, 
and  fix  the  number,  duties,  and  compensation  thereof  subject  to 
appropriations  of  Congress. 

The  said  Board  of  Charities  shall  visit,  inspect,  and  maintain  a  gen- 
eral supervision  over  all  institutions,  societies,  or  associations  of  a 
charitable,  eleemosynary,  correctional,  or  reformatory  character 
which  are  supported  in  whole  or  in  part  by  appropriations  of  Congress, 
made  for  the  care  or  treatment  of  residents  of  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia; and  no  payment  shall  be  made  to  any  such  charitable,  eleemo- 
synary, correctional,  or  reformatory  institution  for  any  resident  of 
the  District  of  Columbia  who  is  not  received  and  maintained  therein 
pursuant  to  the  rules  established  by  such  Board  of  Charities,  except 
in  the  case  of  persons  committed  by  the  courts,  or  abandoned  infants 
needing  immediate  care.  The  officers  in  charge  of  all  institutions 
subject  to  the  supervision  of  the  Board  of  Charities  shall  furnish 
said  board,  on  request,  such  information  and  statistics  as  may  be 
desired;  and  to  secure  accuracy,  uniformity,  and  completeness  of 
such  statistics  the  board  may  prescribe  such  forms  of  report  and  regis- 
tration as  may  be  deemed  to  be  essential;  and  all  plans  for  new  insti- 
tutions shall,  before  the  adoption  of  the  same,  be  submitted  to  said 
board  for  suggestion  and  criticism.  The  Commissioners  of  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia  may  at  any  time  order  an  investigation  by  the 
board,  or  a  committee  of  its  members,  of  the  management  of  any 
penal,  charitable,  or  reformatory  institution  in  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia; and  said  board  or  any  authorized  committee  of  its  members, 
when  making  such  investigation,  shall  have  power  to  send  for  persons 
and  papers  and  to  administer  oaths  and  affirmations;  and  the  report 
of  such  investigation,  with  the  testimony,  shall  be  made  to  the  Com- 
missioners. All  accounts  and  expenditures  of  said  board  shall  be 
certified  as  may  be  required  by  the  Commissioners,  and  paid  as  other 
accounts  against  the  District  of  Columbia.  The  said  board  shall 
make  an  annual  report  to  Congress,  through  the  Commissioners  of  the 
District  of  Columbia,  giving  a  full  and  complete  account  of  all  matters 
placed  under  the  supervision  of  the  board,  all  expenses  in  detail,  and 
all  officers  and  agents  employed,  with  a  report  of  the  secretary,  show- 
ing the  actual  condition  of  all  institutions  and  agencies  under  the 
supervision  of  the  board,  the  character  and  economy  of  administra- 
tion thereof,  and  the  amount  and  sources  of  their  public  and  private 
income.  The  said  report  shall  also  include  recommendations  for  the 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  185 

economical  and  efficient  administration  of  the  charities  and  reforma- 
tories of  the  District  of  Columbia.  The  said  board  shall  prepare  and 
include  with  its  annual  report  such  estimates  of  future  appropriations 
as  will,  in  the  judgment  of  a  majority  of  its  members,  best  promote 
the  effective,  harmonious,  and  economical  management  of  the  affairs 
under  its  supervision;  and  such  estimates  submitted  shall  be  included 
in  the  regular  annual  Book  of  Estimates.  No  member  or  employee 
of  said  board  shall  be  either  directly  or  indirectly  interested  in  any 
contract  for  building,  repairing,  or  furnishing  any  institution  which 
the  board  is  authorized  to  investigate  and  supervise  (31  Stats.,  664). 


BOARD    OF    CHILDREN  8    GUARDIANS. 


AN  ACT  to  provide  for  the  care  of  dependent  children  in  the  District  of  Columbia  and 
to  create  a  Board  of  Children's  Guardians. 

That  there  shall  be  created  in  and  for  the  District  of  Columbia  a 
board  to  be  known  as  the  Board  of  Children's  Guardians,  composed  of 
nine  members  who  shall  serve  without  compensation,  the  said  board 
to  be  a  body  politic  and  corporate  and  to  have  the  powers  and  to  be 
constituted  in  the  manner  hereinafter  provided. 

SEC.  2.  That  the  members  of  the  Board  of  Children's  Guardians 
shall  be  appointed  by  the  judges  of  the  police  court  and  the  judge 
holding  the  criminal  court  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  met  together 
for  that  purpose,  the  assent  of  a  majority  of  such  judges  being  neces- 
sary to  appointment  in  each  case:  Provided,  That  there  shall  always 
be  at  least  three  representatives  of  each  sex  upon  the  board.  Of  the 
nine  members  first  appointed  after  the  passage  of  this  act,  three  shall 
be  appointed  for  one  year,  three  for  two  years,  and  three  for  three 
years.  Thereafter  all  appointments,  except  such  as  shall  be  made  for 
the  remainder  of  unexpired  terms,  shall  be  for  the  term  of  three  years. 
The  judges  of  the  police  court  and  the  judge  holding  the  criminal 
court,  or  a  majority  of  them,  when  met  together  for  that  purpose,  may 
remove  for  cause  any  member  of  the  board:  Provided,  That  such 
member  shall  be  given  an  opportunity  to  be  heard  in  his  own  defense. 

SEC.  3.  That  the  board  shall  elect  from  its  own  members  a  presi- 
dent, vice-president,  and  secretary,  who  shall  severally  discharge  the 
duties  usual  to  such  offices,  or  such  as  theby-laws  of  the  board  may  pre- 
scribe. The  board  shall  have  the  power,  subject  to  the  approval  of 
the  Commissioners,  to  employ  not  more  than  two  agents,  at  an  annual 
compensation  not  exceeding  two  thousand  four  hundred  dollars  for 
the  two,  and  prescribe  their  duties,  and  to  conclude  arrangements 
with  persons  or  institutions  for  the  care  of  dependent  children  at  such 
rates  as  may  be  agreed  upon. 

SEC.  4.  That  said  board  shall  have  the  care  and  supervision  of  the 
lollowing  classes  of  children:  First.  All  children  committed  under 


186  GOVERNMENT   OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

section  two  of  the  act  approved  February  thirteenth,  eighteen  hun- 
dred and  eighty-five,  entitled,  "An  act  for  the  protection  of  children 
in  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  for  other  purposes."  Second.  All 
children  who  are  destitute  of  suitable  homes  and  adequate  means  of 
earning  an  honest  living,  all  children  abandoned  by  their  parents  or 
guardians,  all  children  of  habitually  drunken  or  vicious  or  unfit  par- 
ents, all  children  habitually  begging  on  the  streets  or  from  door  to 
door,  all  children  kept  in  vicious  or  immoral  associations,  all  children 
known  by  their  language  or  life  to  be  vicious  or  incorrigible  whenever 
such  children  may  be  committed  to  the  care  of  the  board  by  the  police 
court  or  the  criminal  court  of  the  District;  and  power  is  hereby  given 
to  these  courts  to  commit  such  children  when  not  over  sixteen  years 
of  age  to  said  board:  Provided,  That  the  laws  regulating  the  com- 
mitment of  children  to  the  reform  schools  of  the  District  shall  not  be 
deemed  to  be  repealed  in  any  part  by  this  act.  Third.  Such  children 
as  the  board  of  trustees  of  the  Reform  School  for  Boys  or  the  Reform 
School  for  Girls  may,  in  their  discretion,  commit  to  the  Board  of 
Children's  Guardians,  and  power  is  hereby  given  the  board  of  trustees 
of  the  said  reform  school  to  commit  any  inmate  of  their  respective 
institutions  to  the  said  board  of  guardians,  conditionally  upon  the 
good  behavior  of  the  child  so  committed.  Fourth.  Under  the  rules 
to  be  established  by  the  board,  children  may  be  received  and  tempo- 
rarily cared  for  pending  investigation  or  judgment  of  the  court. 

SEC.  5.  That  the  board  shall  be  the  legal  guardian  of  all  children 
committed  to  it  by  the  courts,  and  shall  have  full  power  to  board  them 
in  private  families,  to  board  them  in  institutions  willing  to  receive 
them,  to  bind  them  out  or  apprentice  them,  or  to  give  them  in  adoption 
to  foster  parents.  Children  received  from  the  reform  schools  shall  be 
placed  at  work,  bound  out  or  apprenticed,  and  at  any  time  before 
attaining  majority  may  be  returned  to  the  school  from  which  they 
came,  if  in  the  judgment  of  the  board  of  guardians  such  a  course  is 
demanded  by  the  interest  of  the  community  or  the  welfare  of  the  child. 
All  children  under  the  guardianship  of  the  board  shall  be  visited  not 
less  than  once  a  year  by  an  agent  of  the  board,  and  as  much  oftener 
as  the  welfare  of  the  child  demands.  Children  received  temporarily 
may  not  be  kept  longer  than  one  week,  except  by  order  of  the  police 
court  or  the  criminal  court. 

SEC.  6.  That  the  antecedents,  character,  and  condition  of  life  of  each 
child  received  by  the  board  shall  be  investigated  as  fully  as  possible, 
and  the  facts  learned  entered  in  permanent  records,  in  which  shall 
also  be  noted  the  subsequent  history  of  each  child,  so  far  as  it  can 
be  ascertained. 

SEC.  7.  That  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  shall  have  authority 
to  prescribe  the  form  of  records  to  be  kept  by  the  board  of  guardians, 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  187 

and  the  methods  to  be  employed  by  them  in  paying  bills  and  auditing 
accounts;  and  an  annual  report  of  its  operations  hereunder  shall  be 
made  by  the  board  to  the  superintendent  of  charities.  The  superin- 
tendent of  charities  shall  have  full  powers  of  investigation  and  report 
regarding  all  branches  of  the  work  of  the  board,  as  well  as  over  all 
institutions  in  which  children  are  placed  by  the  board ;  and  it  shall  be 
his  duty  to  recommend  annually  the  appropriations  which  in  his  judg- 
ment are  necessary  to  the  carrying  on  of  its  work. 
Approved,  July  26,  1892.  (27  Stats.,  268.) 

AN  ACT  to  enlarge  the  powers  of  the  courts  of  the  District  of  Columbia  in  cases 
involving  delinquent  children,  and  for  other  purposes. 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and  House  of  Representatives  of  the  United 
States  of  America  in  Congress  assembled,  That  the  judges  of  the  crim- 
inal and  police  courts  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are  hereby  authorized 
and  empowered,  at  their  discretion,  to  commit  to  the  custody  and  care 
of  the  Board  of  Children's  Guardians  of  the  District  of  Columbia 
children  under  seventeen  years  of  age  who  shall  be  convicted  of  petty 
crimes  or  misdemeanors  which  may  be  punishable  with  fine  or  impris- 
onment; and  said  Board  of  Children's  Guardians  shall  place,  under 
contract,  such  children  in  such  suitable  homes,  institutions,  or  training 
schools  for  the  care  of  children  as  it  may  deem  wise  and  proper. 

SEC.  2.  That  no  court  shall  commit  a  child  under  seventeen  years  of 
age,  charged  with  or  convicted  of  a  petty  crime  or  misdemeanor  pun- 
ishable by  a  fine  or  imprisonment,  to  a  jail,  workhouse,  or  police 
station;  but  if  such  child  be  unable  to  give  bail  or  pay  a  fine,  it  may 
be  committed  to  the  Board  of  Children's  Guardians  temporarily  or 
permanently,  in  the  discretion  of  the  court,  and  said  board  shall  make 
some  suitable  provision  for  said  child  outside  the  inclosure  of  any  jail, 
workhouse,  or  police  station,  or  said  court  may  commit  such  child  to 
the  reform  school  under  the  laws  now  providing  for  such  commitment. 

SEC.  3.  That  for  the  purpose  of  aiding  the  court  in  a  proper  dispo- 
sition of  cases  referred  to  in  section  one  the  Board  of  Children's 
Guardians  is  hereby  authorized  and  directed  to  designate  one  of  its 
employees  as  a  probation  officer,  whose  duty  shall  be  to  make  such 
investigation  in  cases  involving  children  under  seventeen  years  of  age 
as  the  court  may  direct,  to  be  present  in  court  in  order  to  represent 
the  interests  of  the  child  when  the  case  is  heard,  to  furnish  the  court 
such  information  and  assistance  as  the  judge  may  require,  and  to  take 
charge  of  any  child  before  and  after  trial  as  may  be  directed  by  the 
court. 

SEC.  4.  That  any  person  within  the  District  of  Columbia,  of  suffi- 
cient financial  ability,  who  shall  refuse  or  neglect  to  provide  for  any 
child  under  the  age  of  fourteen  years,  of  which  he  or  she  shall  be  the 


188  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

parent  or  guardian,  such  food,  clothing,  and  shelter  as  will  prevent 
the  suffering  and  secure  the  safety  of  such  child,  shall  be  deemed 
guilty  of  a  misdemeanor,  and  upon  conviction  thereof  shall  be  subject 
to  punishment  by  a  fine  of  not  more  than  one  hundred  dollars,  or  by 
imprisonment  in  the  workhouse  of  the  District  of  Columbia  for  not 
more  than  three  months,  or  both  such  fine  and  imprisonment. 

SEC.  5.  That  whenever  petition  or  information  shall  have  been  filed 
in  any  court  of  the  District  of  Columbia  authorized  to  commit  children 
to  the  care,  custody,  and  guardianship  of  the  Board  of  Children's 
Guardians  for  such  commitment  of  any  child,  and  upon  the  hearing  of 
the  same  before  said  court  it  shall  appear  to  the  satisfaction  of  the 
court  that  such  child  is  entitled  to  be  committed  as  aforesaid  under  or 
by  virtue  of  any  of  the  provisions  of  the  act  of  Congress  approved 
July  twenty-sixth,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-two,  entitled  "An  act 
to  provide  for  the  care  of  dependent  children  in  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia and  to  create  a  Board  of  Children's  Guardians,"  and  if  said  evidence 
tends  to  show  that  such  child  has  a  father  or  a  mother,  either  of  whom 
is  able  to  contribute  to  the  support  of  such  child,  either  by  reason  of 
having  means  or  property  or  having  an  income  consisting  of  wages  or 
salary  due  for  personal  services  or  labor  or  otherwise,  but  fails  or 
neglects  so  to  do,  then  the  proper  prosecuting  officer  shall  file  in  the 
police  court  of  the  District  of  Columbia  an  information  charging  said 
father  or  mother,  or  both,  with  such  failure  or  neglect,  and  upon  con- 
viction thereof  the  said  court  shall  require  the  father  or  the  mother  of 
such  child,  or  both  such  father  and  mother,  to  contribute  by  stated 
payments,  to  be  made  to  said  Board  of  Children's  Guardians,  toward 
the  support  of  such  child  such  sum  or  sums,  monthly,  weekly,  or 
otherwise,  as  in  the  judgment  of  said  court  either  or  both  such  father 
and  mother  should  and  may  be  able  to  pay;  and  the  courts  aforesaid 
may  at  any  time  hear  and  determine  any  petition  for  an  order  for  con- 
tribution toward  maintenance  of  any  child  who  has  heretofore  been  or 
who  may  hereafter  be  committed  to  the  guardianship  of  the  Board  of 
Children's  Guardians,  or  for  modifying  or  suspending  the  operation 
of  any  such  order  previously  made. 

SEC.  6.  That  any  person  against  whom  an  order  for  contribution 
toward  maintenance  may  have  been  made,  as  provided  for  in  this  act, 
who  shall  refuse  or  neglect  to  make  such  payments  as  ordered,  shall  be 
deemed  guilty  of  contempt,  and  upon  conviction  thereof  shall  be 
sentenced  to  suffer  imprisonment  in  the  workhouse  of  the  District  of 
Columbia  for  not  less  than  three  months  nor  more  than  one  year,  and 
such  imprisonment  shall  not  exempt  such  person  from  additional 
imprisonment  for  further  neglect  or  refusal  to  make  contribution  as 
aforesaid:  Provided,  however,  That  if,  after  such  conviction,  any  such 
parent  shall  appear  before  the  court  before  which  such  conviction 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  189 

shall  have  taken  place  and  shall  show  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  court 
that  the  amount  due  under  suc"h  order,  up  to  the  time  of  conviction, 
has  been  paid,  and  further,  with  good  and  sufficient  surety,  to  be 
approved  by  said  court,  shall  enter  into  bond  to  the  United  States  in 
the  penal  sum  of  five  hundred  dollars,  conditioned  that  he  will  there- 
after pay  such  sums  as  may  have  been  ordered  or  that  may  thereafter 
be  ordered  to  be  paid  by  said  court  until  such  order  shall  be  revoked, 
the  said  court  may  suspend  sentence  therein  during  the  continuance 
of  such  bond. 

SEC.  7.  That  the  disbursing  officer  of  the  Board  of  Children's  Guard- 
ians shall  receive  and  shall  be  responsible  under  his  bond  for  all 
moneys  paid  to  said  board  under  the  provisions  of  this  act,  and  shall 
pay  the  amounts  so  received  by  him  into  the  Treasury  of  the  United 
States  within  twenty  days  after  the  close  of  each  fiscal  quarter. 

SEC.  8.  That  all  acts  and  portions  of  acts  inconsistent  with  the  pro- 
visions mentioned  above  are  hereby  repealed,  and  the  terms  of  the 
provisions  in  the  above  sections  shall  become  law  on  and  after  the  date 
of  approval. 

Approved  March  3,  1901.     (31  Stats.,  1095.) 

When  the  Board  of  Children's  Guardians  place  in  private  families 
children  committed  to  the  guardianship  of  said  board  by  the  courts 
of  the  District,  such  children  shall,  as  far  as  practicable,  be  placed  only 
in  such  families  as  are  of  the  same  religious  denomination  or  belief  as 
the  parents  or  last  surviving  parent  of  the  child.  (31  Stat.,  843.) 

THE  NATIONAL  TRAINING  SCHOOL  FOE  BOYS  AND  THE  GIRLS '  REFORM 

SCHOOL. 

There  are  two  institutions  in  the  District,  one  for  boys  (16  Stats., 
119)  and  one  for  girls  (25  Stats.,  245),  the  object  of  which  is  the 
reformation  of  boys  and  girls  who  are  not  susceptible  of  parental 
discipline,  or  who  become  liable  to  punishment  by  imprisonment  for 
minor  infractions  of  the  law.  Each  of  these  institutions  is  managed 
by  a  separate  board  of  trustees. 

The  National  Training  School  for  Boys  (sundry  civil  act,  May  23, 
1908)  is  situated  on  the  Bladensburg  road,  about  2  miles  north  of  the 
city  of  Washington;  the  Reform  School  for  Girls  is  on  the  Conduit 
road,  near  the  District  line. 

The  boards  of  trustees  of  these  institutions  are  appointed  by  the 
President  of  the  United  States. 

INSANE. 

Indigent  insane  persons  resident  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are 
admitted  for  temporary  detention  into  the  Government  Hospital  for 
the  Insane,  at  the  expense  of  said  District,  at  the  request  of  the  Com- 


190  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

missioners,  and  for  permanent  care  and  treatment  when  committed 
upon  the  Commissioners'  request  based  upon  the  finding  of  a  marshal's 
jury,  confirmed  by  the  justice  holding  the  equity  court. 

Nonresident  indigent  insane  persons  found  in  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia are  admitted  upon  the  same  conditions  as  the  former,  but  it  is  the 
duty  of  the  Commissioners  to  return  them  to  their  homes  so  soon  as 
their  domiciles  can  be  ascertained. 

»  WORKHOUSE. 

The  workhouse  is  for  the  confinement  of  persons  convicted  of  minor 
offenses  against  the  laws  and  sentenced  to  imprisonment  for  compara- 
tively short  terms.  Prisoners  who  are  able  to  work  and  whom  it  is 
deemed  prudent  to  employ  outside  of  the  workhouse  are  required  to 
do  various  kinds  of  labor  in  the  various  departments  of  the  asylum 
and  on  the  asylum  grounds  and  the  public  works. 

WASHINGTON    ASYLUM. 

The  object  of  this  institution  is  the  public  relief  and  maintenance  by 
the  District  of  poor,  infirm,  and  diseased  persons  who  are  in  need  of 
such  assistance.  All  of  its  inmates  who  are  able  to  work  are  required 
to  be  occupied  in  some  kind  of  useful  employment. 

JAIL. 

When  any  person  is  sentenced  to  imprisonment  for  a  term  not 
exceeding  six  months,  the  court  may  direct  that  such  imprisonment 
shall  be  either  in  the  workhouse  or  in  the  jail.  When  any  person  is 
sentenced  for  a  term  longer  than  six  months  and  not  longer  than  one 
year,  such  imprisonment  shall  be  in  the  jail,  and  where  the  sentence  is 
imprisonment  for  more  than  one  year  it  shall  be  in  some  penitentiary. 

INSURANCE    DEPARTMENT. 

The  Commissioners  appoint  a  superintendent  of  insurance,  who, 
subject  to  the  Commissioners'  general  directions,  has  supervision  of 
all  matters  pertaining  to  insurance,  insurance  companies,  and  bene- 
ficial orders  and  associations. 

It  is  the  duty  of  the  superintendent  to  see  that  all  laws  of  the 
United  States  relating  to  insurance  or  insurance  companies,  benefit 
orders,  and  associations  doing  business  in  the  District  are  faithfully 
executed,  with  the  object  of  preventing  loss  to  insured  persons 
through  the  mismanagement  or  insolvency  of  such  companies. 

The  list  of  fees  exacted  of  such  companies  was  established  by  order 
of  February  4,  1902,  and  is  embraced  among  the  items  under  head  of 
"Methods  of  taxation." 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  191 

METROPOLITAN    POLICE    DEPARTMENT. 

Appointees  on  the  police  force  of  the  District  of  Columbia  must  be 
able  to  read,  write,  and  speak  the  English  language,  be  a  citizen  of 
the  United  States,  and  have  resided  in  the  District  for  two  years  next 
preceding  the  appointment,  never  have  been  indicted  and  convicted 
of  crime,  be  at  least  5  feet  8  inches  in  height,  between  22  and  35 
years  of  age,  of  good  health  and  reputation,  and  must  pass  an  exam- 
ination as  to  his  knowledge  in  the  elementary  branches  of  education 
and  as  to  his  knowledge  of  the  principal  localities  of  the  District. 

The  Metropolitan  police  district  of  the  District  of  Columbia  shall 
be  coextensive  with  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  shall  be  subdivided 
into  such  police  districts  and  precincts  as  the  Commissioners  of  said 
District  may  from  time  to  time  direct. 

The  Commissioners  of  said  District  shall  appoint  to  office,  assign  to 
such  duty  or  duties  as  they  may  prescribe,  and  promote  all  officers 
and  members  of  said  Metropolitan  police  force  according  to  such 
rules  and  regulations  as  said  Commissioners  in  their  exclusive  juris- 
diction and  judgment  may  from  time  to  time  make,  alter,  or  amend: 
Provided,  That  original  appointments  of  privates  on  said  police  force 
at  the  time  this  Act  takes  effect  shall  be  classified  as  follows:  Class 
one :  Privates  who  have  served  under  their  present  appointments  less 
than  three  years  shall  be  included  in  class  one,  and  at  the  expiration 
of  three  years  from  the  date  of  said  appointment  shall  be  promoted 
to  class  two,  if  the  conduct  and  intelligent  attention  to  duty  of  such 
privates  shall  justify  such  promotion.  Class  two:  Privates  who  have 
served  under  their  present  appointments  more  than  three  years  and 
less  than  five  years  shall  be  included  in  class  two,  and  after  the  expira- 
tion of  five  years  from  the  date  of  said  appointment  shall  be  promoted 
to  class  three,  if  the  conduct  and  intelligent  attention  to  duty  of  such 
privates  shall  justify  such  promotion.  Class  three:  Privates  who 
have  served  under  their  present  appointments  more  than  five  years 
shall  be  included  in  class  three.  All  original  appointments  of  privates 
shall  be  made  to  class  one,  and  promotions  shall  be  made  from  class 
one  to  class  two  in  order  of  appointment  to  the  force  after  three 
years'  service  as  privates  of  class  one,  and  from  class  two  to  class 
three  after  five  years'  service  as  privates  of  class  two,  in  all  cases 
where  the  conduct  and  intelligent  attention  to  duty  of  any  private 
shall  justify  such  promotion. 

The  said  Metropolitan  police  force  shall  consist  of  one  major  and 
superintendent,  who  shall  continue  to  be  invested  with  such  powers 
and  charged  with  such  duties  as  is  provided  by  existing  law,  et  al. 
(34  Stat.  pt.  1,  221.) 

74986—09 13 


192  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 


STREET-RAILWAY    CROSSING    POLICEMEN. 


In  addition  to  the  above-mentioned  force,  the  Commissioners  are 
required  to  station  special  policemen  at  such  street-railway  crossings 
and  intersections  in  the  city  of  Washington  as  they  deem  necessary. 
The  expense  of  that  service  is  paid  pro  rata  by  the  respective  street- 
railway  companies,  according  to  the  number  of  cars  of  each  company 
operated  over  such  crossings.  The  present  number  of  such  officers 
on  duty  is  37,  and  their  compensation  $75  per  month  each.  They 
must  possess  the  same  qualifications  for  appointment  and  are  subject 
to  the  same  rules  and  discipline  as  members  of  the  regular  force.  (30 
Stats.,  489.) 

PRIVATE    DETECTIVES. 

Private  detectives  may  be  appointed,  who  shall  give  bond,  satisfac- 
tory to  the  Commissioners,  for  at  least  $10,000,  and  be  subject  to  all 
laws  which  govern  the  police  force  in  respect  to  persons,  property, 
and  money.  (14  Stats.,  214.) 

ADDITIONAL   AND    SPECIAL   POLICEMEN. 

Additional  policemen  are  appointed  by  the  Commissioners,  whose 
jurisdiction  extends  over  a  definite  and  limited  area,  practically  the 
immediate  vicinity  of  the  property  of  the  persons  who  apply  for  their 
appointment  (12  Stats.,  322) ;  for  instance,  the  vicinage  of  a  number 
of  business  houses  and  stores. 

Special  policemen  are  appointed  under  the  act  of  March  3,  1899,  on 
the  application  of  corporations  or  individuals,  or  in  the  Commission- 
ers' own  discretion,  for  duty  in  connection  with  some  specified  prop- 
erty, as  that  of  a  railroad  company  or  a  storehouse.  As  in  case  of 
additional  policemen,  their  compensation  is  paid  by  the  person  or 
corporation  at  whose  instance  they  are  appointed.  They  are  subject 
to  such  general  regulations  as  the  Commissioners  may  prescribe.  (30 
Stats.,  1057.) 

The  power  of  special  policemen  shall  only  be  exercised  by  them  in 
connection  with  the  property  of  or  under  the  charge  of  the  corpora- 
tion or  individual  upon  his  application  for  that  appointment.  (Order 
of  Commissioners,  June  7,  1899.) 

POLICE    PRECINCTS. 

For  facility  of  administration  the  police  department  is  divided 
into  10  precincts,  at  each  of  which  is  a  central  station,  located  as  here- 
inafter stated.  The  substation  at  Anacostia  is  in  the  fifth  precinct. 


HOUSE    OF    DETENTION. 


The  house  of  detention  is  a  branch  of  the  police  department,  where 
all  persons  under  17  years  of  age  and  women  and  girls  over  that  age 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  193 

under  arrest  or  held  as  witnesses  to  offenses  against  the  laws  are 
detained  pending  examination  or  trial. 

The  building  occupied  for  this  service  is  No.  505  Eighteenth 
street  NW. 

POLICE    PATROL    AND    AMBULANCE    SYSTEMS. 

The  police  patrol  system  consists  of  a  number  of  structures  called 
"patrol  boxes,"  generally  distributed  throughout  the  District,  which 
contain  apparatus  for  telephonic  communication  with  the  several 
police  stations;  and  of  a  number  of  vehicles  to  transport  persons  under 
arrest  without  requiring  the  arresting  officer  to  leave  his  beat 
unguarded. 

An  ambulance  system  is  also  under  the  supervision  of  the  police 
department,  to  provide  transportation  for  sick  or  injured  persons  in 
cases  of  emergency  to  a  place  where  medical  or  surgical  care  and  treat- 
ment may  be  promptly  provided. 

SURGEONS    OF   POLICE    AND    FIRE    DEPARTMENTS. 

The  members  of  the  police  and  fire  departments  and  the  watchmen 
at  the  public  parks  are  entitled  to  the  gratuitous  service  of  the  sur- 
geons of  the  police  and  fire  departments.  These  surgeons  also  make 
preliminary  examinations  of  persons  alleged  to  be  insane  and  examine 
candidates  for  positions  in  the  police  and  fire  departments  to  deter- 
mine whether  they  are  physically  suitable  for  service  in  those  depart- 
ments. 


POLICE    FUND. 


The  police  fund  is  derived  from  the  following  sources: 

All  fines  imposed  by  the  Commissioners  upon  members  of  the 
police  force  by  way  of  discipline,  and  collectible  from  pay  or  salary; 
all  rewards,  fees,  proceeds  of  gifts,  and  any  portion  of  emoluments  that 
may  be  paid  and  given  for  extraordinary  service  of  any  member  of 
said  force,  which  he  shall  not  be  allowed  to  retain.  (12  Stats.,  581.) 

All  moneys  arising  from  the  sale  of  unclaimed  goods  in  the  custody 
of  the  property  clerk  of  the  police  department.  (Ib.,  325.) 

One  dollar  per  month  deducted  from  the  pay  of  each  regular  police- 
man. (23  Stats.,  316.) 

From  fines  in  police  court,  enough  to  meet  any  inadequacy  of  other 
sources  named.  (29  Stats.,  404;  31  Stats.,  820.) 

From  receipts  for  dog  licenses,  enough  to  meet  any  inadequacy  of 
other  sources  named.  (31  Stats.,  820.) 

The  sum  so  deducted  shall  be  invested  in  United  States  or  District 
bonds  by  the  Treasurer  of  the  United  States,  and  be  held  by  him  sub- 
ject to  the  drafts  of  the  Commissioners  for  expenditures  made  in 


194  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

suance  of  law,  and  such  expenditures  shall  be  accounted  for  as  required 
by  law  for  other  expenditures  of  the  District.  (23  Stats.,  316.) 

And  said  fund  shall  be  used  as  follows: 

The  superintendent,  assistant  superintendent,  any  captain  or  lieu- 
tenant of  police,  in  case  of  retirement  as  now  provided  by  law  (Feb- 
ruary 28,  1901),  shall  receive  not  exceeding  $100  per  month;  and  if,  in 
case  of  the  death  from  injury  or  disease  of  any  of  said  officers,  he  leave 
children  under  16  years  of  age,  or  a  widow,  the  same  shall  be  for  their 
relief  during  the  period  of  widowhood,  or  until  such  children  reach 
the  age  of  16  years;  but  not  exceeding  $50  per  month  for  a  widow  nor 
$25  per  month  for  a  child.  (Ib.,  see  also  act  March  1,  1905  (33  Stats., 
821);  seep.  193.) 

For  the  relief  of  any  policeman  who.  by  injury  received  or  disease 
contracted  in  line  of  duty,  or,  having  served  not  less  than  fifteen 
years,  shall  become  so  permanently  disabled  as  to  be  discharged 
from  service  therefor;  and  in  case  of  his  death  from  such  injury  or 
disease,  leaving  a  widow,  or  children  under  sixteen  ye&rs,  for  their 
relief:  Provided  further,  That  such  relief  shall  not  exceed  for  any 
one  policeman  or  his  family  the  sum  of  $50  per  month;  and  a  sum 
not  exceeding  $75  may  be  allowed  from  said  fund  to  defray  the 
funeral  expenses  of  any  policeman  dying  in  the  service  of  the  Dis- 
trict. (23  Stats.,  316.) 

For  medical  or  surgical  service  or  treatment  not  rendered  by  a 
surgeon  of  the  police  and  fire  departments,  or  any  other  like  extraordi- 
nary expense  rendered  necessary  by  disability  or  injury  contracted  in 
the  line  of  duty,  when  in  the  judgment  of  the  Commissioners  such 
expenditure  is  proper.  (12  Stats.,  325.) 

The  present  expenditures  from  this  fund  are  about  $82,000  a  year. 

POLICE    CLOTHING    FXTND. 

This  department  also  has  a  fund  to  provide  new  uniforms  or  parts 
thereof  to  replace  any  part  of  such  equipment  destroyed  or  mate- 
rially damaged  during  the  discharge  of  especially  hazardous  duty. 
This  fund  is  derived  from  moneys  received  for  rewards  for  arrest  of 
deserters  from  the  Army  or  Navy,  and  from  voluntary  contributions, 
and  miscellaneous  sources. 

FIRE    DEPARTMENT. 

The  fire  department  of  the  District  of  Columbia  embraces  the 
entire  territory  of  the  District. 

Appointees  of  the  fire  department  must  possess  the  same  qualifica- 
tions as  those  of  the  police  department,  except  that  they  must  not 
weigh  less  than  150  pounds  nor  be  under  23  years  of  age  nor  over  35. 

The  apparatus  of  the  department  also  embraces  a  water  tower 
and  a  number  of  combination  chemical  engines  and  hose  wagons. 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  195 


FIRE    MARSHAL. 


Tt  is  the  duty  of  the  fire  marshal  to  ascertain  as  accurately  as  he 
can  the  cause  of  fires  and  the  amount  of  loss  occasioned  thereby;  to 
supervise  the  storage  and  use  of  highly  inflammable  substances,  so  as 
to  minimize  the  risk  and  extent  of  damage  by  their  combustion  in 
that  state,  and  to  perform  such  other  duties  as  may  be  assigned  to 
him  to  lessen  the  probability  and  extent  of  loss  to  structures  and 
injury  to  persons  in  consequence  of  fires. 


FIUKMKX   S    RELIEF    FUND. 


The  firemen's  relief  fund  is  derived  from  deductions  of  $1  per  month 
from  the  pay  of  each  fireman  (23  Stats.,  317),  and  deficiency  therein  is 
met  out  of  the  receipts  from  fines  in  the  police  court  (29  Stats.,  404) 
and  from  dog  licenses,  in  common  with  the  police  fund.  (31  Stats., 
•820.)  Fines  imposed  upon  the  force  by  way  of  discipline,  and  col- 
lectible from  pay  or  salary,  are  also  placed  in  this  fund. 

The  deductions  aforesaid  shall  be  invested  in  United  States  or  Dis- 
trict bonds  and  held  in  the  manner  provided  by  existing  law  in  respect 
to  the  police  fund. 

And  said  firemen's  relief  fund  shall  be  used  as  follows: 

''SEC.  4.  That  hereafter  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Co- 
lumbia are  hereby  authorized  and  directed  to  deposit  with  the  Treas- 
urer of  the  United  States,  out  of  receipts  from  fines  in  the  police 
court  and  receipts  from  dog  licenses,  a  sufficient  amount  to  meet 
any  deficiency  in  the  policemen's  fund  or  firemen's  fund:  Provided, 
That  the  chief  engineer  of  the  fire  department  and  all  other  officers 
of  said  department  of  and  above  the  rank  of  captain,  the  superintend- 
ent, assistant  superintendent,  any  captain  or  lieutenant  of  police, 
in  case  of  retirement  as  now  provided  by  law,  shall  receive  relief  not 
exceeding  one  hundred  dollars  per  month;  and  in  case  of  the  death 
from  injury  or  disease  of  any  member  of  the  police  or  fire  department, 
if  he  be  unmarried  and  leave  a  dependent  mother,  who  is  a  widow, 
the  same  shall  be  for  her  relief  during  the  period  of  widowhood,  or 
if  he  leave  a  widow,  or  children  under  sixteen  years  of  age,  the  same 
shall  be  for  their  relief  during  the  period  of  widowhood,  or  until  such 
children  reach  the  age  of  sixteen  years:  Provided,  That  in  no  case 
shall  the  amount  paid  to  such  dependent  mother  or  widow  exceed 
fifty  dollars  per  month,  nor  shall  the  amount  paid  for  a  child  exceed 
twenty-five  dollars  per  month." 

Approved,  March  1,  1905.     (33  Stats.,  821.) 

For  the  relief  of  any  fireman  who  shall  by  reason  of  injuries  received 
or  disease  contracted  in  the  line  of  actual  fire  duty,  going  to,  at,  or 
returning  fr.om  a  fire,  or,  having  served  not  less  than  fifteen  years 


196  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

shall  become  so  permanently  disabled  as  to  be  discharged  from  service 
therefor,  and  in  case  of  the  death  of  such  fireman  from  such  injury  or 
disease,  leaving  a  widow  or  children  under  16  years  of  age,  for  their 
relief:  Provided,  That  no  fireman  shall  be  entitled  to  any  of  the  bene- 
fits of  this  relief  fund  who  may  by  reason  of  his  own  indiscretion 
bring  on  any  injury  or  disease  which  may  incapacitate  him  from  the 
performance  of  his  duties  as  a  member  of  the  fire  department  or  who 
shall  be  retired  for  such  cause  or  causes:  Provided  further,  That  such 
relief  shall  not  exceed  for  any  one  fireman  or  his  family  the  sum  of 
$50  per  month,  and  a  sum  not  exceeding  $75  may  be  allowed  from 
such  fund  to  defray  the  funeral  expenses  of  any  fireman  dying  in  the 
service  of  the  District.  (29  Stats.,  405.) 

"Sec.  4  a.  That  hereafter  whenever  any  member  of  the  fire  depart- 
ment of  the  District  of  Columbia  in  the  actual  discharge  of  his  duty 
shall  become  so  disabled  by  injury  as  to  require  medical  or  surgical  • 
services  or  treatment  other  than  such  as  can  be  rendered  by  the 
board  of  police  and  fire  surgeons,  the  expense  of  such  services  or 
treatment  may  be  paid  from  the  firemen's  pension  fund:  Provided, 
That  no  such  expenses  shall  be  paid  except  upon  the  recommenda- 
tion of  the  chief  engineer  of  the  fire  department,  approved  by  the 
Commissioners  of  said  District,  and  such  recommendation  must  be 
accompanied  by  a  certificate  from  a  member  of  the  board  of  fire 
surgeons  setting  forth  the  nature  and  cause  of  the  sickness  or  dis- 
ability which  rendered  such  services  or  treatment  necessary."  Ap- 
proved, February  27,  1909. 

The  present  expenditures  from  this  fund  are  about  $37,000  per 
annum. 

HEALTH    DEPARTMENT. 

The  Commissioners  appoint  for  such  term  of  office  as  they  deem 
advisable  a  health  officer,  who  must  be  a  physician,  and  who,  as  such* 
officer,  executes  and  enforces,  under  the  direction  of  the  Commission- 
ers, all  laws  and  regulations  designed  to  protect  the  public  health. 
(20  Stats.,  107.) 

Among  the  health  officer's  duties  are  the  medical  inspection  of  the 
public  schools;  the  enforcement  of  the  laws  and  regulations  which 
relate  to  the  prevention  of  the  sale  and  use  of  deleterious  articles  of 
food;  the  isolation  of  persons  ill  with  contagious  diseases,  in  order  to 
prevent  the  spread  of  such  diseases,  and  the  prevention  of  the  intro- 
duction of  such  diseases  from  other  localities;  the  impounding  of 
vicious  and  unlicensed  dogs  and  of  other  animals  unlawfully  kept  or 
at  large;  the  prevention  and  abatement  of  nuisances  injurious  to 
health;  the  enforcement  of  the  law  for  the  prevention  of  the  emission 
of  dense  black  or  gray  smoke;  keeping  a  record  of  vital  statistics, 
and  furnishing  transcripts  of  such  records. 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  197 

BOARDS    OF    MEDICAL    EXAMINERS. 

The  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  appoint  three  boards 
of  medical  examiners.  One  of  them  is  known  as  the  board  of  medical 
examiners  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  is  composed  of  five  physi- 
cians in  good  standing  who  are  adherents  to  the  regular  system  of 
medical  practice.  Another  is  known  as  the  board  of  homeopathic 
medical  examiners  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  is  composed  of 
live  physicians  of  good  standing,  adherents  to  the  homeopathic  system 
of  medical  practice,  selected  from  a  list  of  ten  names  submitted  by  a 
majority  vote  at  some  regular  meeting  of  the  Washington  Homeo- 
pathic Medical  Society.  The  other  is  known  as  the  board  of  eclectic 
medical  examiners  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  is  composed  of 
five  members  in  good  standing,  adherents  to  the  eclectic  system  of 
medical  practice,  selected  from  a  list  of  not  less  than  ten  names  sub- 
mitted by  a  majority  vote  at  some  regular  meeting  of  the  Eclectic 
Medical  Society  of  the  District  of  Columbia. 

The  members  of  each  board  serve  for  a  term  of  three  years  each,  or 
until  their  several  successors  are  appointed.  They  must  have  been 
engaged  in  the  practice  of  medicine  and  surgery  in  the  District  of 
Columbia  for  not  less  than  five  years  at  the  time  of  appointment.  In 
case  of  failure  of  the  two  medical  societies  to  submit  the  lists  men- 
tioned, after  fifteen  days'  notice  from  the  Commissioners,  the  Com- 
missioners may  make  appointments  without  such  nomination. 

It  is  the  duty  of  these  boards  to  examine  and  certify  to  the  board  of 
medical  supervisors  the  qualifications  of  all  applicants  for  authority 
to  practice  medicine  or  surgery  in  the  District  of  Columbia. 

A  special  board  is  appointed  by  the  board  of  medical  supervisors 
to  make  like  certification  as  to  applicants  for  authority  to  practice 
midwifery. 

It  is  the  duty  of  the  several  boards  of  medical  examiners  to  examine 
all  applicants  for  license  to  practice  medicine  and  surgery  in  the  Dis- 
trict of  Columbia  certified  to  them  respectively  by  the  board  of  med- 
ical supervisors,  in  accordance  with  such  rules  as  the  board  of  medical 
supervisors,  with  the  approval  of  the  Commissioners,  shall  make.  (29 
Stats.,  198.)  For  fees  see  "Methods  of  taxation." 

BOARD    OF    MEDICAL    SUPERVISORS. 

The  board  of  medical  supervisors  consists  of  the  presidents  of  the 
three  boards  of  medical  examiners  before  mentioned  and  two  other 
persons  not  physicians,  one  of  whom  shall  be  learned  in  the  law,  to  be 
appointed  by  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  for  a 
term  of  three  years,  or  until  their  successors  are  appointed.  Not 
more  than  two  members  of  said  board  shall  be  adherents  of  any  one 


198  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

system  of  medical  practice.  The  two  lay  membe  s  shall  be  paid  such 
reasonable  compensation  as  the  Commissioners  shall  determine. 

The  secretary  of  this  board  may  be  elected  from  others  than  its 
own  members  and  be  entitled  to  the  san>e  fees  for  taking  testimony 
that  are  allowed  an  examiner  in  chancery  for  such  service. 

This  board,  or  a  majority  thereof,  may  issue  a  license  to  each  appli- 
cant for  authority  to  practice  medicine,  surgery,  or  midwifery  in 
the  District  of  Columbia  who  shall  be  found  qualified  therefor. 
No  person  shall  so  practice  without  such  license,  except  surgeons 
of  the  U.  S.  Army,  Navy,  or  Marine-Hospital  Service,  regularly 
licensed  physicians  and  surgeons  in  actual  consultation  from  other 
States  and  Territories,  or  regularly  licensed  physicians  and  surgeons 
actually  called  from  other  States  or  Territories  to  attend  specified 
cases  in  the  District  of  Columbia.  But  said  prohibition  shall  not 
apply  to  the  treatment  of  any  case  of  actual  emergency,  to  the  prac- 
tice of  massage  or  the  so-called  Swedish  movement  cure,  nor  to  the 
use  of  ordinary  domestic  remedies,  without  fee,  gift,  or  consideration 
of  any  kind. 

Any  balance  of  the  amount  received  for  license  fees  remaining  after 
the  regular  expenses  of  the  board  shall  be  met  shall  be  divided  among 
of 


A  board  of  pharmacy  conei sting,  of  five  licensed 
pharmacists  shall  be  appointed  by  the  Gonsais  si  oners  of 
said  District,,  each  of  "toom  shall  have  been  for  the  five 
yearfc  '  immediately  preceding,'  and  shall 'be  daring  the 
term 'of  his  appbintment,  actively  engaged  in1  the  prs.c-' 
tide;  df    poinaacy  in  said  District .  '  All  appointments 
shall;  be  made  in  such  manner  that  the  term  of  of  floe 
of  one  examiner  shall  expire  on  the  thirtieth  day  of 
Jane  of  each  year,  but  not  until  his  successor  has  been 
appointed  'and  qualified,,  nor  until  he  has  taken  oath 
fairly  ain;d  impartially  to  perform  his  duties.     Said 
Control  ssloners  may  remove  any  member  of 'said  bostfd  after 
hearing*     The  Board  s&iall  elect  a  president,  a  secre- 
tary, and  a  treasurer,  and  have  a  coxanon  seal,  and  is 
vested  with  porter  to  issue  licenses  to  pfabtica  pharmacy, 
and1  issue  permits  for  the  sale  of  poisons  in  the  District 
of  .Columbia;.  The  treasurer  shall  give  such  frond  as  the 
Goatnis  si  oners  of  the  District  deem  necessary. 
(34,  Stats,  pt.l,  175.  1005)^  ^   _ _ 

The  Commissioners  appoint,  for  terms  of  five  years,  a  board  of 
dental  examiners,  consisting  of  five  reputable  dentists,  residents  of, 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  199 

and  for  three  years  immediately  preceding  their  appointment  actively 
engaged  in  the  practice  of  dentistry  in,  the  District. 

No  person  shall  commence  the  practice  of  dentistry  in  the  District 
who  has  not  received  a  certificate  from  the  board  of  dental  examiners 
that  he  is  qualified  to  practice  dentistry,  which  has  been  duly  regis- 
tered with  the  health  officer. 

The  expenses  of  the  board  are  paid  from  the  fees  received  for 
making  examinations  of  applicants  for  such  certificates.  (27  Stats., 
42.) 

The  rate  of  fees  appears  under  "Methods  of  taxation." 

STREET    CLEANING. 

Many  portions  of  the  roadways  of  the  paved  streets  are  swept  by 
horse  machines  under  contract  made  for  a  period  of  five  years. 
Other  portions  of  such  streets  are  cleaned  by  hand  sweeping  ma- 
chines, the  operatives  of  which  are  employed  by  the  superintendent 
of  the  street  cleaning  department,  and  uniformed  in  white  to  facilitate 
surveillance  by  the  overseers  and  to  secure  neatness  in  their  appearance. 

The  unpaved  streets  and  alleys  are  cleaned  under  two  contracts 
also  made  for  a  term  of  five  years. 

The  daily  area  cleaned  by  hand  in  1908  was  1,345,000  square  yards. 
The  hand  sweeping  machines  are  the  property  of  the  District. 

The  machine  cleaning  is  done  under  contract  at  22f  cents  per 
1,000  square  yards.  During  the  past  year  1,157,000  square  yards 
of  paved  surface  were  cleaned  daily. 

The  unimproved  streets  are  cleaned  by  contract  at  the  contract 
price  of  $73.80  per  day.  For  this  sum  the  contractor  furnishes  34 
laborers,  11  horses  and  carts  with  drivers,  and  all  tools  necessary  to 
do  the  work.  The  area  cleaned  during  1908  was  97,000  square  yards. 

The  alley  cleaning  is  done  under  contract  at  40  cents  per  1,000 
square  yards. 

During  1908,  47  miles  of  unimproved  streets  and  avenues  were 
sprinkled  daily,  the  cost  of  which  was  $480,805. 

COLLECTION    AND    DISPOSAL    OF    CITY    REFUSE. 

The  Commissioners  enter  into  contract  for  periods  not  exceeding 
five  years  each  for  the  removal  of  ashes  and  miscellaneous  refuse 
from  private  residences,  and  for  the  collection  and  disposal  of  gar- 
bage, dead  animals,  and  other  noxious  refuse  wherever  found  in  the 
District,  and  prescribe  regulations  for  the  government  of  this  branch 
of  the  public  service. 


200  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

All  garbage  collected  must  be  disposed  of  .through  a  reduction  or 
consumption  process  in  such  manner  as  to  entail  no  damage  or 
claim  against  the  District  of  Columbia  from  such  disposal,  and  be  sub- 
ject to  the  inspection  and  approval  of  the  Commissioners.  All  gar- 
bage contracts  expressly  provide  that  no  garbage  or  other  vegetable  or 
animal  matter  shall  be  dumped  into  the  Potomac  River  or  any  other 
waters,  fed  to  animals,  or  exposed  to  the  elements  upon  land. 

The  garbage  so  collected  at  present  is  carried  by  railroad  down 
the  west  shore  of  the  Potomac  about  25  miles,  to  Cherry  Hill,  where  it 
is  converted  into  fertilizing  material  and  other  valuable  by-products. 

The  contract  rate  for  the  collection  and  disposal  of  garbage  is 
$78,400  per  annum.  The  contractors  are  required  to  make  collections 
as  follows:  Daily  throughout  the  year  from  markets,  hotels,  res- 
taurants, apartment  houses,  and  such  like  places;  daily,  except  Sun- 
day, from  residences  within  the  fire  limits ;  and  triweekly  without  the 
fire  limits  from  May  1  to  September  30,  inclusive;  and  triweekly  and 
semiweekly  in  the  corresponding  territorities  during  the  balance  of 
the*  year. 

In  1907,  a  total  of  41,269  tons  of  garbage  was  collected  and  disposed 
of  as  against  39,975  tons  the  previous  year,  an  increase  of  1,294  tons. 

The  contractor  for  miscellaneous  refuse  is  required  to  collect 
weekly  throughout  the  year,  both  within  and  without  the  fire  limits, 
from  private  residences,  apartment  houses  with  not  to  exceed  four 
families,  and  boarding  houses  with  not  to  exceed  25  rooms. 

Ashes  are  collected  from  private  residences,  apartment  houses  with 
not  to  exceed  four  families,  and  boarding  houses  with  not  to  exceed  25 
rooms  as  follows:  Semiweekly  within  the  fire  limits  and  weekly  with- 
out the  fire  limits  from  November  1  to  April  15,  inclusive;  and  weekly, 
both  within  and  without  the  fire  limits  during  the  balance  of  the  year. 

ELECTRICAL    AND    STREET-LIGHTING    SERVICE. 

The  fire-alarm  and  telephone  systems  belonging  to  the  District 
government,  the  street-lighting  service,  and  the  construction  and 
condition  of  all  electrical  installations  are  subject  to  the  surveillance 
of  the  District  official  styled  "the  electrical  engineer." 

The  street-lighting  service  consists  of  gas,  electric,  and  oil  lights; 
the  use  of  the  latter  is  almost  entirely  confined  to  the  country  roads 
and  remote  suburbs.  The  cost  of  this  service  is  paid  out  of  the  pub- 
lic funds,  except  the  expense  of  lighting  streets  on  which  steam  rail- 
roads are  operated,  which  is  paid  by  the  railroad  companies  to 
which  the  railroads  so  used  belong,  and  the  cost  of  lighting  a  small 
number  of  crossings,  where  suburban  street  railways  and  country 
roads  intersect,  which  is  paid  by  the  street-railway  company  whose 
tracks  are  crossed  by  such  roads. 

Both  gas  and  electricity  for  lighting  purposes  are  furnished  by 
private  companies. 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THK    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  201 

CHILD    LABOR. 

No  child  under  fourteen  years  of  age  shall  be  permitted  to  work  in 
any  factory,  workshop,  mercantile  establishment,  store,  business 
office,  telegraph  or  telephone  office,  restaurant,  hotel,  apartment  house 
club,  theatre,  bowling  alley,  laundry,  bootblack  stand,  or  in  the 
distribution  or  transmission  of  merchandise  or  messages;  nor  in  any 
work  for  wages  or  other  compensation,  when  the  public  schools  are 
in  session,  nor  before  six  o'clock  a.  m.  nor  after  seven  p.  m.,  except 
children  employed  in  the  Senate,  or  under  permit  of  the  judge  of  the 
juvenile  court,  who  may  permit  the  employment  of  any  child  between 
twelve  and  fourteen  years  at  any  proper  occupation  necessary  for  its 
support,  or  a  disabled,  ill,  or  invalid  father  or  mother,  younger  brother 
or  sister  or  widowed  mother. 

No  child  under  sixteen  years  of  age  shall  be  employed  in  any  of 
the  establishments  named  unless  the  employer  keeps  accessible  to  the 
inspectors  and  truant  officers,  an  age  and  schooling  certificate,  and 
lists  of  all  such  children,  conspicuously  posted  near  the  principal 
entrance  of  the  building  in  which  such  children  are  employed. 

No  minor  under  sixteen  years  of  age  shall  be  suffered  to  work  in 
any  of  the  establishments  named  more  than  eight  hours  in  any  one 
day,  or  before  the  hour  of  six  o'clock  antemeridian,  or  after  the  hour 
of  seven  o'clock  postmeridian,  and  in  no  case  shall  the  number  of 
hours  exceed  forty-eight  in  a  week. 

Every  employer  shall  post  in  a  conspicuous  place  in  every  room 
where  such  persons  are  employed  a  printed  notice,  stating  the  number 
of  hours  required  of  them  on  each  day  of  the  week,  the  hours  of  com- 
mencing and  stopping  work,  and  the  hours  when  the  time  or  times 
allowed  for  dinner  or  for  other  meals  begin  and  end. 

No  male  child  under  ten  and  no  girl  under  sixteen  years  of  age 
shall  exercise  the  trade  of  bootblacking,  or  sell  or  expose  or  offer  for 
sale  any  newspapers,  magazines,  periodicals,  or  goods,  wares,  or 
merchandise  of  any  description  whatsoever,  upon  the  streets,  roads, 
or  highways,  or  in  any  public  place;  nor  shall  any  male  child  under 
sixteen  years  exercise  the  trade  of  bootblacking  or  so  sell  or  expose 
or  offer  for  sale  any  newspapers,  magazines,  etc.,  unless  a  permit  and 
badge  shall  have  been  issued  to  him. 

But  no  child  to  whom  a  permit  and  badge  are  so  issued  shall  so  sell 
or  expose  or  offer  for  sale  any  newspapers,  magazines,  etc.,  after  ten 
o'clock  in  the  evening  or  before  six  o'clock  in  the  morning. 

Nothing  in  this  law  shall  apply  to  the  employment  of  any  child  in 
a  theatrical  exhibition,  provided  the  written  consent  of  one  of  the 
Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  is  first  obtained. 

(Act  May  28,  1908.) 


202  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

EXAMINERS    IN    VETERINARY   MEDICINE. 

A  board  of  examiners  in  veterinary  medicine  is  appointed  by  the 
Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  consisting  of  five  reputable 
practitioners  of  veterinary  medicine,  who  shall  have  graduated  from 
some  college  authorized  by  law  to  confer  degrees,  each  of  whom  shall 
have  been  a  bona  fide  resident  of  said  District  for  three  years  last  past 
before  appointment,  and  each,  during  said  period,  shall  have  been 
actively  engaged  in  the  practice  of  his  profession  in  said  District. 
The  appointments  first  made  shall  be  one  for  one  year,  one  for  two 
years,  one  for  three  years,  one  for  four  years,  and  one  for  five  years, 
and  thereafter  appointments  shall  be  for  a  period  of  five  years,  except 
such  as  are  occasioned  by  death,  resignation,  or  removal,  in  which 
cases  the  appointments  shall  be  for  the  remainders  of  the  unexpired 
terms:  Provided,  That  the  said  Commissioners  may,  in  their  judg- 
ment, remove  any  member  of  said  board  for  neglect  of  duty  or  other 
sufficient  cause,  after  due  notice  and  hearing. 

The  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  shall  have  power  to 
require  any  or  all  officers  of  said  board  to  give  bond  to  the  District  of 
Columbia  in  such  form  and  penalty  as  they  may  deem  proper.  The 
said  board  shall  in  the  month  of  July  in  each  year  submit  to  said 
Commissioners  a  full  report  of  its  transactions  during  the  twelve 
months  immediately  preceding. 

(Act  of  February  1,  1907.) 

STREET    RAILWAYS. 

All  street  railways  operated  in  the  District  of  Columbia  do  so  under 
charters  granted  by  Congress. 

WATER    SUPPLY. 

The  water-supply  system  is  owned  and  controlled  by  the  Govern- 
ment. 

The  water  supply  is  obtained  from  the  Potomac  Kiver  by  means  of 
a  dam  at  Great  Falls,  and  thence  through  an  aqueduct,  about  17  miles 
long,  and  a  system  of  settling  and  storage  reservoirs.  This  aqueduct 
has  a  circular  section  of  9  feet  diameter  for  the  upper  14  miles,  and  a 
D-shaped  section  of  the  same  diameter  for  the  remainder.  This  part 
of  the  water-supply  system  is  under  the  charge  of  the  Chief  of  Engi- 
neers of  the  United  States  Army.  A  sand  filtration  plant  is  an 
adjunct  to  this  service. 

The  distribution  of  the  water  to  private  consumers  is  effected  by  a 
system  of  mains  and  services  laid  and  controlled  under  the  supervision 
of  the  District  government. 

The  cost  of  laying  mains  is  paid  out  of  the  water  fund,  but  private 
property  for  whose  special  benefit  minor  water  mains  are  laid  is  spe- 
cially assessed  therefor  at  a  flat  rate  of  $1.25  per  front  foot. 

The  average  daily  delivery  of  water  by  this  system  is  about 
65,000,000  gallons. 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  203 

For  charges  for  use  of  water  and  assessments  for  water  main,  sec 
under  head  of  "  Methods  of  taxation." 

A  limited  supply  of  water  is  derived  from  a  few  shallow  and  33 
deep  wells,  constructed  by  the  District  government  and  variously 
distributed. 

SEWER    SYSTEM. 

The  sewerage  system  consists  of  a  number  of  trunk  sewers  which 
will  intercept  and  convey  to  the  pumping  station  at  the  southern 
extremity  of  New  Jersey  avenue  the  entire  sewage  of  the  city  and  the 
storm  water  of  the  lower  portion  of  the  Tiber  Valley.  The  sewage 
will  be  pumped  from  the  pumping  station  across  the  Anacostia  River 
in  an  inverted  siphon;  thence  carried  along  the  left  bank  of  the 
Potomac  River  to  near  the  United  States  naval  magazine,  where  it 
will  be  discharged  into  the  river.  The  pumping  station  also  includes  a 
plan  for  elevating  the  storm  water  of  the  low  area  of  the  city  adjacent 
to  Pennsylvania  avenue  during  freshet  stages  of  the  Potomac,  dis- 
charging the  same  into  the  Anacostia  River. 

SURVEYOR. 

The  Commissioners  appoint  a  surveyor  of  the  District  of  Columbia 
for  a  period  of  four  years,  at  a  salary  of  $3,000  per  annum.  (28  Stat., 
689.)  His  principal  duty  is  to  measure  and  mark  the  boundaries  of 
lots  or  other  subdivisions  of  land,  and  furnish  certificates  of  such 
measurement  and  the  area  of  the  lots,  in  square  feet,  to  persons  apply- 
ing to  him  for  such  services,  and  to  do  similar  work  for  the  District. 
The  Commissioners  fix  a  schedule  of  fees  to  be  charged  by  him  for  all 
work  done  for  private  persons,  to  be  paid  into  the  Treasury.  The 
surveyor  charges  no  fees  for  work  done  by  him  for  the  District. 

The  surveyor  also  requires  applicants  for  surveys  of  unsubdivided 
tracts  to  provide  monuments  to  be  used  in  connection  with  such  sur- 
veys. (Order  February  15,  1902.) 

For  list  of  fees  of  this  office,  see  under  head  "Methods  of  taxation." 

HARBOR    MASTER. 

The  laws  and  regulations  to  prevent  the  obstruction  or  pollution  of 
the  harbor  and  to  maintain  the  public  peace  in  its  vicinity  are  enforced 
by  the  harbor  master,  under  the  direction  of  the  major  and  superin- 
tendent of  police,  who  also  performs  many  other  germane  services. 
His  duties  are  facilitated  by  a  steam  vessel,  and  a  crew,  and  several 
police  officers  subject  to  his  direction.  He  is  a  lieutenant  of  police 
assigned  to  that  duty.  (33  Stat.,  pt.  1,  902.) 

WHARF    PROPERTY    AND    HARBOR    LINES. 

The  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  have  exclusive  juris- 
diction over  all  wharf  property  belonging  to  the  United  States  or  the 
District  of  Columbia  in  said  District,  and  the  waters  adjacent  thereto 


204  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

within  the  pier  lines,  except  from  the  north  line  of  the  Arsenal  grounds 
to  the  southern  curb  of  N  street  south,  and  500  linear  feet  of  shore 
line  in  the  flushing  reservoir  at  the  foot  of  Seventeenth  street  west 
and  the  western  curb  of  said  street,  including  a  levee  100  feet  wide. 

The  Commissioners  and  the  Chief  of  Engineers  of  the  Army  are 
authorized  to  make  all  necessary  rules  and  regulations  for  the  proper 
care  of  said  property,  and  fix  the  rate  of  wharfage;  but  no  lease  shall 
extend  beyond  the  period  of  ten  years. 

The  Commissioners  and  the  Chief  of  Engineers  of  the  Army,  with 
the  approval  of  the  Secretary  of  War,  have  fixed  the  harbor  lines. 

(L.  R.  107740;  30  Stats.,  1377.) 

• 

PUBLIC    BATHS. 

A  free  public  bathing  beach  was  constructed  on  the  shore  of  the 
tidal  reservoir  under  authority  of  an  act  of  Congress  approved  Sep- 
tember 6,  1890,  and  was  maintained  until  abandoned  on  September  1, 
1902. 

Several  ponds  formerly  used  by  the  Fish  Commission  for  purposes 
of  fish  culture  have  been  transferred  to  the  District  authorities  for 
public  baths,  and  are  in  course  of  adaptation  to  such  use. 

The  expense  of  management  and  maintenance  is  paid  out  of  the  Dis- 
trict's revenues,  as  other  general  expenses  are  met.  A  small  fee  is 
charged  for  the  hire  of  bathing  suits  to  bathers  who  do  not  use  their 
own,  and  this  fee  is  paid  into  the  Treasury,  as  other  revenues  of  the 
District  are  deposited. 

STEAM    ENGINEERS. 

It  is  unlawful  for  any  person  (except  engineers  who  have  been 
licensed  by  the  United  States  Government  or  the  laws  of  any  State) 
to  act  as  steam  engineer  in  the  District  of  Columbia  who  shall  not 
have  been  regularly  licensed  to  do  so  by  the  Commissioners  thereof, 
and  have  been  examined  by  a  board  of  examiners  composed  of  the 
boiler  inspector  of  the  District  of  Columbia  and  two  practical  engi- 
neers to  be  appointed  by  the  District  Commissioners,  under  rules  and 
regulations  the  Commissioners  from  time  to  time  provide.  For  fees 
see  "Methods  of  taxation." 

Steam  engineers  must  be  at  least  21  years  of  age  and  of  temperate 
habits. 

The  fee  for  a  license  as  such  is  $3  for  original  examination  or 
promotion. 

For  intoxication  on  duty,  for  the  first  offense  the  license  shall  be 
suspended  for  six  months ;  for  the  second  offense,  twelve  months ;  and 
for  the  third  offense  shall  be  revoked  and  the  licensee  ineligible  for 
license  for  five  years. 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  205 

Any  owner  or  lessee  of  steam  boiler  or  engine  (except  boilers  used 
for  steam  heating,  where  the  water  returns  to  the  boiler  without  the 
use  of  a  pump  and  injector  or  inspirator,  and  which  are  worked  auto- 
matically), or  the  secretary  of  any  corporation,  who  shall  knowingly 
employ  a  steam  engineer  as  such  who  has  not  been  regularly  licensed, 
shall  be  fined  $50,  or  in  default  confined  one  month  in  the  workhouse. 
(24  Stats.,  427.) 

PARKS    AND    PARKING. 

The  parking  and  trees  along  the  sidewalks  are  under  the  supervision 
and  control  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  District. 

There  are  approximately  85,000  sidewalk  trees. 

The  large  parks  in  the  city,  such  as  that  around  the  White  House 
and  the  Monument,  the  various  parked  squares,  and  the  circles  and 
triangular  parks  formed  by  the  intersection  of  streets  and  avenues, 
are  under  the  control  of  the  officer  in  charge  of  public  buildings  and 
grounds,  who  is  an  officer  of  the  Corps  of  Engineers  of  the  Army. 

Rock  Creek  Park  is  under  charge  of  a  board  of  control  composed  of 
the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  and  the  Chief  of  Engi- 
neers of  the  Army.  It  contains  approximately  1,600  acres.  (26  Stats., 
492;  28  Stats.,  252;  31  Stats.,  573.) 

The  Zoological  Park  contains  approximately  175  acres  and  is  under 
charge  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Smithsonian  Institution.  (25  Stats., 
808;  26  Stats.,  78;  31  Stats.,  561;  31  Stats.,  622.) 

The  Potomac  Park  contains  621  acres.  It  consists  of  the  greater 
part  of  the  large  tract  of  land  south  of  north  B  street  which  has  been 
reclaimed  from  the  Potomac  River,  and  is  under  the  general  charge  of 
the  Chief  of  Engineers  of  the  Army.  (29  Stats.,  624;  31  Stats.,  622.) 

INSPECTION    OF    BOILERS. 

The  inspector  of  boilers  is  appointed  by  the  Commissioners,  and 
required  by  law  to  examine  and  test  once  each  year  every  steam  boiler 
used  by  private  persons  in  the  District  for  developing  power  to  operate 
machinery,  and  condemn  for  use  those  which  he  decides  to  be  unsafe. 
He  is  entitled  to  exact  a  fee  of  $5,  for  each  examination  from  the 
owner  of  each  boiler  he  so  tests,  but  receives  no  salary  from  the  Dis- 
trict government  for  that  service.  (L.  A.,  433.) 

All  boilers  and  engines  shall  also  be  subject  to  such  safety  tests  as 
the  Commissioners  prescribe.  (24  Stats.,  427.) 

INSPECTION    OF    BUILDINGS. 

It  is  unlawful  to  erect,  alter,  repair,  remove,  or  demolish  any  pri- 
vate building  in  the  District  without  permission  of  the  Inspector  of 
Buildings  and  in  accordance  with  the  building  regulations.  The 
inspector  is  also  charged  with  the  duty  of  causing  defective  or  dan- 
gerous structures  to  be  demolished. 


206  GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

FEES    FOR    BUILDING    PERMITS. 

The  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia  are  hereby  author- 
ized and  directed,  from  time  to  time,  to  prescribe  a  schedule  of  fees 
to  be  paid  for  permits,  certificates,  and  transcripts  of  records  issued 
by  the  inspector  of  buildings  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  for  the 
erection,  alteration,  repair,  or  removal  of  buildings  and  their  appur- 
tenances, and  for  the  location  of  certain  establishments  for  which 
permits  are  now  or  hereafter  may  be  required  under  the  building 
regulations  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  said  fees  to  cover  the  cost 
and  expense  of  the  issuance  of  said  permits  and  certificates  and  of 
the  inspection  of  the  work  done  under  said  permits;  said  schedule 
shall  be  printed  and  conspicuously  displayed  in  the  office  of  said 
inspector  of  buildings;  said  fees  shall  be  paid  to  the  collector  of 
taxes  of  the  District  of  Columbia  and  shall  be  deposited  by  him  in 
the  Treasury  of  the  United  States  to  the  credit  of  the  revenues  of 
the  District  of  Columbia.  (District  of  Columbia  appropriation  act, 
Mar.  3,  1909.) 

SEALER    OF    WEIGHTS    AND    MEASURES. 

The  principal  duty  of  the  sealer  of  weights  and  measures  is  to 
require  that  all  scales,  weights,  and  measures  used  by  storekeepers 
and  others  to  determine  the  weight  or  quantity  of  goods  they  buy  or 
sell  conform  with  the  standard  weight  or  size  fixed  by  law  and  to  affix 
his  seal  to  those  that  are  correct  and  destroy  those  that  are  not.  The 
person  by  whom  the  scale  or  measure  is  used  must  pay  a  small  fee  for 
the  service  thus  performed  by  this  official.  The  fees  so  collected  are 
paid  into  the  Treasury  as  part  of  the  District  revenues. 

For  fees  see  "Methods  of  taxation." 

This  officer  also  has  immediate  supervision  of  the  commissioners  of 
flour,  inspectors  of  wood,  lumber,  flour,  boilers,  and  gauger  of  spirit- 
uous liquors,  who  receive  the  fees  established  by  law  for  their  services 
in  lieu  of  salaries. 

SUPPLIES. 

The  property  clerk  supervises  the  purchase  and  distribution  of  all 
supplies  and  stores  for  the  use  of  the  government  of  the  District  of 
Columbia.  He  gives  bond  in  such  sum  as  the  Commissioners  require. 
These  supplies  are  furnished  under  contracts  entered  into  with  the 
lowest  responsible  bidders  after  due  newspaper  advertisement,  except 
in  cases  of  emergency,  when  special  authority  is  given  to  purchase 
in  open  market. 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  207 

INSPECTION    AND    MEASUREMENT    OF    FIREWOOD. 

It  is  contrary  to  law  to  sell  any  firewood  brought  into  the  District 
unless  it  has  been  inspected  and  approved  by  an  inspector  and  meas- 
urer appointed  by  the  Commissioners  for  that  purpose,  whose  duty  it 
is  to  determine  all  questions  as  to  the  quality  of  the  wood  and  as  to  its 
measurement,  according  to  law.  The  compensation  of  these  officials 
is  derived  from  fees  which  are  paid  by  the  person  who  sells  the  wood. 
(W.  D.,  275;  L.  A.,  176.) 

They  get  no  salary  from  the  District  government. 

For  rate  of  fees  see  "Methods  of  taxation." 

INSPECTION    OF    FLOUR. 

The  Commissioners  are  required  to  appoint  two  inspectors  of  flour, 
whose  duty  it  is  to  examine  all  flour  sold  within  the  District  of  Columbia, 
to  ascertain  whether  it  conforms  in  weight  to  the  requirements  of  law 
and  in  quality  to  the  standards  fixed  from  time  to  time  by  the  com- 
missioners of  flour  inspection.  (30  Stats.,  765;  31  Stats.,  218.) 

For  the  rate  of  fees  see  ''Methods  of  taxation." 

COMMISSIONERS    OF    FLOUR    INSPECTION. 

The  Commissioners  appoint  three  good  and  competent  judges  of 
flour  who  must  be  either  practical  millers,  bakers,  or  flour  merchants, 
as  commissioners  of  flour  inspection,  to  select  standards  for  the  guid- 
ance of  the  inspectors  of  flour.  They  are  entitled  to  a  fee  of  $5  each 
for  each  inspection  on  appeal.  (30  Stats.,  767.) 

INSPECTION    OF    GAS    AND    GAS    METERS. 

The  Commissioners  appoint  an  inspector  and  assistant  inspector  of 
gas  and  meters,  who  are  paid  an  annual  salary  as  other  salaries  of  the 
officers  of  the  District  government  are  paid,  who  must  not  be  a  stock- 
holder nor  employee  in  any  gas  works.  Their  duty  is  to  test  and  deter- 
mine the  illuminating  power  and  purity  of  the  gas  furnished  by  any 
company  orperson,  and  to  test,  prove,  and  seal  all  meters  used  by  them. 

The  assistant  inspector  must  be  a  gas  fitter  by  trade  (18  Stats.,  278). 

Both  give  bond  in  double  the  amount  of  their  salary. 

The  fees  of  the  office  must  be  deposited  in  the  Treasury  as  other 
revenues. 

For  the  rate  of  such  fees  see  under  "Methods  of  taxation." 

INSPECTION    OF    LUMBER. 

All  boards,  plank,  joist,  scantling,  and  timber  brought  to  and  offered 
for  sale  in  the  District,  which  have  not  previously  been  inspected  and 
measured  and  not  marked  with  such  measurement  by  an  inspector  and 
measurer  of  lumber  duly  appointed  by  the  Commissioners,  must  be 

74986—09 14 


208  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

inspected  and  measured  by  one  of  those  officials,  of  whom  there  are 
five,  who  are  entitled  to  receive  for  such  services  a  fee  of  30  cents  per 
1,000  feet  B.  M.,  one-half  of  which  shall  be  paid  by  the  buyer  and 
the  other  half  by  the  seller.  (W.  D.,  252,  461 ;  L.  A.,  176,  258.) 

INSPECTION    OF    PLUMBING. 

It  is  the  duty  of  the  inspector  of  plumbing  to  require  all  plumbing, 
drainage,  and  sewerage  work  in  connection  with  private  premises  to 
be  done  in  accordance  with  the  plumbing  regulations.  (27  Stats.,  21.) 

He  shall  inspect,  or  cause  to  be  inspected  by  his  assistants,  all  houses 
when  in  course  of  erection  in  said  District  to  see  that  the  plumbing, 
drainage,  and  ventilation  of  sewers  thereof  conform  to  the  regulations. 
Also,  at  any  time  during  reasonable  hours,  on  application  of  the  owner 
or  occupant,  or  the  complaint  under  oath  of  any  respectable  citizen,  to 
inspect,  or  cause  to  be  inspected,  any  house  in  said  District,  and  to 
examine  the  plumbing,  drainage,  and  ventilation  of  sewers  thereof. 

It  is  also  his  duty  to  examine  and  pass  upon  all  plans  and  specifica- 
tions filed  in  his  office  for  proposed  plumbing  work  and  house  drainage 
under  the  plumbing  regulations. 

He  also  examines  and  considers,  in  connection  with  the  health  office, 
all  plans  for  sewage  disposal  by  means  of  broad  irrigation  or  subsoil 
irrigation. 

PLUMBING    BOARD. 

The  plumbing  board  consists  of  two  master  plumbers,  one  journey- 
man plumber,  and  two  employees  of  the  District  of  Columbia  having 
a  knowledge  of  plumbing,  gasfitting,  and  sanitary  work,  all  appointed 
by  the  Commissioners.  A  majority  of  said  board  is  a  quorum.  (30 
Stats.,  477.) 

It  is  the  duty  of  the  plumbing  board  to  examine  all  applicants  for 
license  as  master  plumbers  or  gas  fitters  and  to  report  the  results  of 
examinations  to  said  Commissioners,  who  issue  a  license  to  the  appli- 
cant if  satisfied  that  he  is  duly  qualified.  For  fees  see  "Methods  of 
taxation." 

HAY    SCALES. 

Public  weighing  scales  are  located  at  several  places  in  the  District 
where  it  is  convenient  for  farmers  who  bring  hay  to  market  in  wagons 
to  have  each  load  weighed  and  obtain  a  certificate  from  a  public  weigh- 
master  showing  its  weight,  which  must  be  done  before  the  hay  can  be 
sold.  (L.  A.,  367.) 

The  weighmaster  is  not  appointed  like  other  officers  of  the  District, 
but  is  a  person  who  has  bought  at  a  public  auction  sale,  which  is  held 
each  year  about  the  1st  of  July,  the  right  to  use  the  public  scales  for 
one  year  and  exact  from  persons  whose  produce  or  animals  he  weighs 
the  fees  prescribed  by  law  for  his  services,  for  rates  of  which  see 
schedule  of  fees  under  heading  "Methods  of  taxation." 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  209 

PUBLIC    MARKETS. 

Three  markets  in  the  District  are  under  the  control  of  the  District 
authorities.  One  of  them,  at  Seventh  and  C  streets  SE.,  is  named 
the  "Eastern  Market"  (L.  A.  141,  375,  495) ;  one  at  Twenty-first  and 
K  streets  NW.,  called  the  "Western  Market"  (L.  A.,  217);  and  one 
in  Georgetown,  called  the  "Georgetown  Market"  (Acts  of  Georgetown, 
August  8,  1863). 

The  receipts  from  these  markets  during  the  fiscal  year  ended  June 
30,  1908,  were  $17,729.57,  and  the  authorized  expenditures  were 
$10,236.30,  including  $700.21  for  repairs. 

CORONER. 

It  is  the  duty  of  the  coroner  to  hold  an  inquest  over  any  dead  per- 
son where  the  manner  and  cause  of  death  are  not  known  to  be  acci- 
dental or  in  the  course  of  nature  and  to  report  to  the  grand  jury  the 
facts  ascertained  at  inquests  in  all  cases  where  the  circumstances  seem 
to  require  judicial  investigation.  (L.  A.,  174,  248,  292;  21  Stats., 
461.) 

His  duties  in  case  of  absence  or  disability  are  performed  by  a  deputy 
coroner.  (28  Stats.,  488.) 

The  total  number  of  deaths  investigated  by  the  coroner  during  the 
fiscal  year  1902  was  865,  of  which  218  were  from  accidents  and  other 
forms  of  violence. 

JUDICIARY. 

The  judiciary  of  the  District  of  Columbia  consists  of  a  court  of 
appeals,  a  supreme  court,  a  police  court,  the  municipal  court,  a 
number  of  United  States  commissioners,  and  a  juvenile  court. 

The  court  of  appeals  of  the  District  of  Columbia  consists  of  a  chief 
justice  and  two  associate  justices.  The  compensation  of  the  chief 
justice  is  $7,500  per  annum  and  that  of  the  associate  justices  $7,000 
per  annum  each. 

The  members  of  this  court  are  appointed  by  the  President  and  con- 
firmed by  the  Senate,  and  hold  office  during  good  behavior. 

The  jurisdiction  of  this  court  extends  to  the  review  of  the  final 
orders  and  judgments  of  the  supreme  court  of  the  District,  and  from 
such  of  its  interlocutory  orders  as  the  court  of  appeals  may  allow  in 
the  interest  of  justice.  It  also  has  jurisdiction  in  cases  of  suits  and 
controversies  in  law  and  equity  arising  under  the  patent  or  copyright 
laws,  and  damages  for  the  infringement  of  any  patent  by  action  on  the 
case  in  accordance  with  sections  4919,  4920,  4921,  chapter  1,  Title  LX, 
Revised  Statutes  of  the  United  States.  Any  party  aggrieved  by  the 
decision  of  the  Commissioner  of  Patents  in  any  interference  case  may 
appeal  therefrom  to  the,  court  of  appeals. 


210  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

All  appeal  lies  from  the  final  judgment  or  decree  of  the  court  of 
appeals  to  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States  in  all  cases  in 
which  the  matter  in  dispute  exceeds  $5,000,  and  also  without  regard 
to  the  sum  in  dispute  wherein  is  involved  the  validity  of  any  patent 
or  copyright,  or  in  which  is  drawn  in  question  the  validity  of  any 
statute  of  or  an  authority  exercised  under  the  United  States. 

The  supreme  court  of  the  District  of  Columbia  consists  of  one  chief 
justice,  with  five  associate  justices,  whose  compensation  is  $6,000  per 
annum  each.  The  members  of  this  court  are  appointed  by  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States  and  confirmed  by  the  Senate,  and  hold  office 
during  good  behavior.  This  court  is  a  court  of  general  jurisdiction, 
and  it  also  has  the  same  powers  and  exercises  the  same  jurisdiction  as 
the  circuit  courts  of  the  United  States.  It  has  cognizance  of  all  crimes 
and  offenses  committed  within  the  District,  and  of  all  cases  in  law  and 
equity  between  parties,  both  or  either  of  whom  shall  be  resident  or  be 
found  within  the  District,  and  also  of  all  actions  or  suits  of  a  civil 
nature  at  common  law  or  in  equity  in  which  the  United  States  shall  be 
plaintiff  or  complainant,  and  of  all  seizures  on  land  or  on  water,  and 
of  all  penalties  and  forfeitures  arising  or  accruing  under  the*  laws  of 
the  United  States.  It  is  invested  with  jurisdiction  to  issue  writs  of 
mandamus  to  executive  officers  of  the  Federal  and  municipal  govern- 
ments, it  has  also  appellate  jurisdiction  over  justices  of  the  peace.  It 
has  jurisdiction  of  all  applications  for  divorce,  and  may  entertain 
petitions  for  change  of  name;  and  it  has  concurrent  jurisdiction  with 
justices  of  the  peace  when  the  amount  in  controversy  exceeds  $50 
and  is  less  than  $300.  Appeals  lie  from  this  court  to  the  court  of 
appeals.  It  is  divided  into  a  circuit  court,  an  equity  court,  a  dis- 
trict court,  a  criminal  court,  and  a  probate  court. 

The  police  court  consists  of  two  judges,  whose  compensation  is 
$3,000  per  annum  each.  They  are  appointed  by  the  President  of  the 
United  States  for  a  term  of  six  years.  The  jurisdiction  of  the  court 
extends  to  the  disposition  of  cases  involving  minor  offenses  against  the 
criminal  laws  and  the  holding  of  persons  brought  before  it  for  the 
action  of  the  grand  jury.  Appeals  lie  from  this  court  to  the  court  of 
appeals. 

The  judge  of  the  juvenile  court  is  appointed  by  the  President  of 
the  United  States  for  a  term  of  six  years,  and  is  entitled  to  a  salary 
of  $3,000.  The  juvenile  court  of  the  District  of  Columbia  has  original 
and  exclusive  jurisdiction  of  all  crimes  and  offenses  of  persons  under 
seventeen  years  of  age  hereafter  committed  against  the  United  States, 
not  capital  or  otherwise  infamous,  and  not  punishable  by  imprison- 
ment in  the  penitentiary,  committed  within  the  District  of  Columbia 
except  libel,  conspiracy,  and  violations  of  the  post-office  and  pension 
laws  of  the  United  States,  and  also  of  all  offenses  of  persons  under 
seventeen  years  of  age  hereafter  committed  against  the  laws,  ordi- 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  211 

nances,  and  regulations  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  shall  have 
power  to  examine  and  commit  or  hold  to  bail  all  persons  under 
seventeen  years  of  age,  either  for  trial  or  further  examination,  in  all 
cases,  whether  cognizable  therein  or  in  the  supreme  court  of  the 
District  of  Columbia;  all  the  powers  and  jurisdiction  conferred  by 
the  Act  entitled  "  An  act  for  the  protection  of  children,  and  so  forth," 
approved  February  thirteenth,  eighteen  hundred  and  eighty-five, 
upon  the  police  court  of  the  District  of  Columbia;  of  all  cases  involv- 
ing the  legal  punishment  of  children  under  the  provisions  of  "An 
act  to  provide  for  the  care  of  dependent  children  in  the  District  of 
Columbia  and  to  create  a  Board  of  Children's  Guardians,"  approved 
July  twenty-sixth,  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-two,  and  of  the  acts 
amendatory  thereof;  also  of  all  cases  under  the  provisions  of  "An 
act  to  enlarge  the  powers  of  the  courts  of  the  District  of  Columbia 
in  cases  involving  delinquent  children,  and  for  other  purposes," 
approved  March  third,  nineteen  hundred  and  one;  and  concurrently 
with  the  criminal  court,  have  and  exercise  all  the  powers  and  juris- 
diction conferred  by  said  last-mentioned  act  upon  the  police  court 
of  the  District  of  Columbia  in  the  case  of  parents  or  guardians  who 
shall  refuse  or  neglect  to  provide  food,  clothing,  and  shelter  for  any 
child  under  the  age  of  fourteen  years;  may  impose  conditions  upon 
any  person  found  guilty  under  the  said  last-mentioned  act,  and  so 
long  as  such  person  shall  comply  therewith  to  the  satisfaction  of  the 
court  may  suspend  sentence,  and  may  impose  similar  conditions  in 
all  cases  of  dependent  or  delinquent  children  cognizable  under  exist- 
ing laws  in  any  court  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  except  in  the  cases 
hereinbefore  already  excepted.  The  said  juvenile  court  may  also 
hear,  try,  and  determine  all  cases  of  persons  less  than  seventeen 
years  of  age  charged  with  habitual  truancy  from  school,  and  in  its 
discretion  to  commit  them  to  the  Board  of  Children's  Guardians,  who 
are  hereby  given  the  care  and  supervision  thereof  when  so  committed. 
No  person  under  seventeen  years  of  age  shall  hereafter  be  placed  in 
any  institution  supported  wholly  or  in  part  at  the  public  expense 
until  the  fact  of  delinquency  or  dependency  has  been  first  ascertained 
and  declared  by  the  said  juvenile  court.  All  children  of  the  class 
now  liable  to  be  committed  to  the  Reform  School  for  Boys  and  the 
Reform  School  for  Girls  shall  hereafter  be  committed  by  the  juvenile 
court  to  said  schools  respectively.  All  other  children  delinquent, 
neglected,  or  dependent  (with  the  exceptions  hereinbefore  stated) 
shall  hereafter  be  committed  by  the  juvenile  court  to  the  care  of  the 
Board  of  Children's  Guardians,  either  for  a  limited  period  on  proba- 
tion or  during  minority,  as  circumstances  may  require,  and  no  child 
once  committed  to  any  public  institution  by  the  order  of  the  juvenile 
court  shall  be  discharged  or  paroled  therefrom  or  transferred  to 
another  institution  without  the  consent  and  approval  of  the  said 
court.  March  19,  1906  (34  Stat,,  part  1,  73).  The  juvenile  court  of 


212  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

the  District  of  Columbia  shall  have  power  to  issue  execution  on  all 
forfeited  recognizances  upon  motion  of  the  proper  prosecuting 
officer,  and  all  writs  of  fieri  facias  or  other  writs  of  execution  issued 
by  said  court  shall  be  directed  to  and  executed  by  the  marshal  of  the 
District  of  Columbia.  And  any  recognizance  taken  in  the  juvenile 
court,  after  being  forfeited,  may  be  transmitted  to  the  clerk's  office 
of  the  supreme  court  of  the  District  of  Columbia  and  therein  docketed 
in  the  same  manner  as  forfeited  recognizances  taken  in  the  police 
court  are  now  docketed,  and  thereupon  shall  have  the  same  effect  as 
if  taken  in  said  supreme  court;  and  said  lien  shall  continue  as  long 
as  such  judgment,  decree,  or  recognizance  shall  be  in  force  or  until 
the  same  shall  be  satisfied  or  discharged. 
Approved,  March  4,  1909. 

THE    MUNICIPAL    COURT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF   COLUMBIA. 

The  inferior  court  known  as  " justice  of  the  peace"  in  the  District 
of  Columbia  shall  remain  as  now  constituted,  but  shall  hereafter  be 
known  as  "the  municipal  court  of  the  District  of  Columbia."  It 
shall  consist  of  the  present  justices  of  the  peace  of  said  District,  who 
shall  serve  as  the  judges  of  said  «ourt  for  the  unexpired  terms  of  their 
now  existing  commissions,  and  who  shall  not  be  required  to  be  recom- 
missioned  for  said  unexpired  terms.  Thereafter,  and  upon  the  expira- 
tion of  the  commission  of  any  of  said  members,  his  successor  shall  be 
appointed  by  the  President  of  the  United  States,  by  and  with  the 
advice  and  consent  of  the  Senate,  for  a  term  of  four  years,  unless 
sooner  removed  as  provided  by  law:  Provided,  That  no  person  shall 
be  appointed  to  said  office  unless  he  shall  have  been  a  bona  fide 
citizen  and  resident  of  said  District  for  the  continuous  period  of  at 
least  five  years  immediately  preceding  his  appointment,  and  shall 
either  have  been  a  judge  of  said  court  for  at  least  one  year,  or  shall 
have  been  engaged  in  the  actual  practice  of  law  before  the  supreme 
court  of  the  District  of  Columbia  for  a  period  of  at  least  five  years  prior 
to  his  appointment.  Each  judge,  when  appointed,  shall  take  an  oath 
for  the  faithful  and  impartial  performance  of  the  duties  of  his  office. 
The  judges  of  said  court  shall  no  longer  be  required  to  give  bond  as 
heretofore,  but  a  bond  shall  be  given  by  the  clerk  of  said  court,  who 
shall  receive  and  account  for  all  fees  as  hereinafter  provided.  Said 
municipal  court  shall  sit  for  the  trial  of  causes  in  one  building  to  be 
designated  by  the  Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  to  be 
rented  by  said  District  of  Columbia  at  a  rental  not  to  exceed  one 
thousand  eight  hundred  dollars  per  annum:  Provided,  That  the  first 
vacancy  occurring  in  the  office  of  judge  in  the  municipal  court  of  the 
District  of  Columbia,  after  the  passage  of  this  act  shall  not  be  filled, 
and  thereafter  the  number  of  said  judges  shall  be  five  only. 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  213 

The  said  court  and  each  member  thereof  shall  exercise  the  same 
jurisdiction  as  was  vested  in  them  as  justice  of  the  peace  immediately 
before  the  passage  of  this  act,  and  no  more,  and  shall  be  governed  by 
the  laws  then  in  force,  except  as  said  laws  and  said  jurisdiction  are 
expressly  changed  or  enlarged  hereby. 

Any  member  of  said  court  may  try  any  case  within  its  jurisdiction 
according  to  law,  regardless  of  the  place  and  residence  of  the  defendant 
therein.  The  jurisdiction  of  said  court  is  hereby  increased  from  three 
hundred  to  five  hundred  dollars  in  the  class  of  cases  over  which  it  had 
jurisdiction  immediately  prior  to  the  passage  of  this  act;  that  said 
jurisdiction  shall  be  exclusive  when  the  amount  claimed  for  debt  or 
damages  or  the  value  of  personal  property  claimed  does  not  exceed 
one  hundred  dollars,  and  concurrent  with  the  supreme  court  of  the 
District  of  Columbia  when  it  exceeds  one  hundred  dollars  and  is  not 
in  excess  of  five  hundred  dollars,  with  the  same  right  to  remove  any 
case  by  certiorari,  as  heretofore,  in  cases  of  concurrent  jurisdiction. 

All  pending  actions  and  all  actions  hereinafter  instituted  shall  be 
assigned  for  trial  among  the  members  of  said  court  in  nearly  equal 
numbers  and  in  such  manner  as  may  be  agreed  upon  between  them. 
The  judges  of  said  court  shall  hold  separate  sessions  as  heretofore,  and 
are  empowered  to  make  rules  for  the  apportionment  of  the  business 
between  them,  and  the  act  of  each  of  said  judges  respecting  the  busi- 
ness of  said  court  shall  be  deemed  and  taken  to  be  the  act  of  said  court. 
Each  of  said  judges  is  hereby  empowered  to  administer  oaths.  The 
judges  of  said  court  shall  receive  the  annual  salary  of  two  thousand 
five  hundred  dollars  in  lieu  of  the  salary  heretofore  provided  for 
justices  of  the  peace  by  section  six  of  the  Code  of  Law  for  the  District 
of  Columbia,  to  be  paid  monthly  as  heretofore,  but  they  shall  not 
receive  the  allowance  heretofore  granted  for  rent,  stationery,  and 
other  expenses.  In  case  of  sickness,  absence,  disability,  expiration  of 
term  of  service  of  or  death  of  either  of  the  judges  of  the  police  court 
or  of  the  juvenile  court,  any  one  of  the  justices  of  the  supreme  court 
of  the  District  of  Columbia  may  designate  one  of  the  judges  of  the 
municipal  court  to  discharge  the  duties  of  said  judges  until  such 
disability  be  removed  or  vacancy  filled.  The  justice  so  designated 
shall  take  the  same  oath  prescribed  for  these  judges. 

The  said  court  shall  have  power  to  appoint  a  clerk  at  an  annual  salary 
of  one  thousand  five  hundred  dollars  and  an  assistant  clerk  at  an 
annual  salary  of  one  thousand  dollars,  payable  monthly  by  the  District 
of  Columbia,  which  clerks  shall  hold  office  at  the  pleasure  of  the  court. 

The  clerks  shall  receive  and  care  for  all  deposits  for  costs  made  and 
fees  exacted  under  the  rules  governing  the  fee  charges  of  said  court, 
and  shall  make  a  weekly  deposit  with  the  collector  of  taxes  for  the 
District  of  Columbia  of  all  fees  earned  during  the  preceding  week. 


214  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT     OF    COLUMBIA. 

He  shall  return  to  suitors  making  such  deposits  any  proportion  of  a 
deposit  which  shall  remain  in  his  hands  over  and  above  the  earned  fees 
in  completed  cases,  and  shall  render  an  itemized  statement  to  the 
auditor  of  the  District  of  Columbia  of  every  fee  earned,  on  such  forms 
and  in  such  manner  as  shall  be  prescribed  by  the  auditor  of  the  District 
of  Columbia.  In  case  there  shall  remain  in  the  hands  of  the  said  clerk 
for  a  term  of  three  years  a  balance  or  part  of  a  deposit  in  any  case 
which  shall  not  have  been  called  for  by  the  party  or  parties  entitled 
to  receive  the  same,  the  same  shall  revert  to  the  District  of  Columbia, 
and  be  paid  forthwith  to  the  collector  of  taxes  as  part  of  the  revenues 
of  the  District  of  Columbia. 

In  all  suits  in  said  court  process  shall  be  signed  by  the  said  clerk  or 
assistant  clerk  in  the  name  of  the  court.  The  assistant  clerk  may  sign 
the  name  of  the  clerk  to  any  official  act  required  by  law  or  by  the 
practice  of  the  court  to  be  performed  by  the  clerk.  In  such  case  the 

signature  shall  be  ' ' — ,  Clerk,  by ,  Assistant 

Clerk." 

Both  the  clerk  and  assistant  clerk  are  hereby  given  authority  to  ad- 
minister oaths  in  all  cases  pending  in  said  court,  or  about  to  be  filed 
therein. 

The  clerk  shall  perform  such  other  and  further  duties  as  may  from 
time  to  time  be  prescribed  by  the  municipal  court. 

He  shall  give  bond  to  the  District  of  -Columbia  in  the  sum  of  five 
thousand  dollars,  with  surety  or  sureties  to  be  approved  by  the  Com- 
missioners of  the  District  of  Columbia,  for  the  faithful  performance  of 
the  duties  of  his  office,  and  the  assistant  clerk  shall  give  a  like  bond 
in  the  sum  of  two  thousand  dollars :  Provided,  That  the  expenditures 
to  be  incurred  under  any  of  the  provisions  of  this  act  shall  not  in  any 
case  exceed  the  total  amount  of  revenues  and  fees  of  the  said  municipal 
court. 

The  said  clerk  shall  keep  a  docket  similar  to  the  one  heretofore  pro- 
vided for  justices  of  the  peace. 

Approved,  February  17,  1909. 

The  United  States  commissioners  are  appointed  by  the  supreme 
court  of  the  District.  They  are  essentially  examining  magistrates, 
who  conduct  investigations  into  alleged  violation  of  United  States  laws 
and  decide  whether  parties  appearing  before  them  shall  be  brought 
before  the  grand  jury. 

STATUTE    LIMITATIONS. 

The  statute  limitations  are:  Regarding  judgments,  twelve  years; 
notes,  three  years,  and  open  accounts,  three  years. 


GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  215 

LEGAL   RATE    OF    INTEREST. 

The  legal  rate  of  interest  in  the  District  is  6  per  cent  per  annum 
where  no  rate  is  specified,  but  contracts  may  be  made  for  any  rate  not 
exceeding  1.0  per  cent  per  annum.  (Code  of  Law,  D.  C.,  sees.  1178, 
1179.)  The  rate  of  interest  on  judgments  against  the  District  of 
Columbia  is  4  per  centum  (32  Stat.,  pt.  1,  610). 

THE    LAW    IN    FORCE    IN    THE    DISTRICT. 

The  laws  of  the  District  have  been  derived  from  many  sources. 
The  law  of  Maryland,  when  that  State  gave  to  the  United  States  the 
present  territory  comprising  the  District,  was  composed  of  the  com- 
mon law  of  England,  the  acts  of  the  British  Parliament  found  appli- 
cable to  the  condition  of  the  people,  and  the  enactments  of  the  provin- 
cial and  State  legislatures  of  Maryland.  This  law  was  continued  in 
force  in  the  District  of  Columbia  by  an  act  of  Congress  of  February 
27,  1801.  It  has  been  modified  by  subsequent  laws  of  Congress,  the 
numerous  laws  and  ordinances  of  the  municipal  corporations  which 
have  existed  in  the  District;  by  the  orders  made  by  the  Commissioners 
in  pursuance  of  the  acts  of  Congress  granting  to  them  the  power  to 
make  police  and  other  municipal  regulations,  and  recently  by  a  code 
of  law  which  Congress  enacted  to  simplify  and  systematically  arrange 
the  principal  laws  and  methods  of  court  procedure. 

MILITIA. 

The  militia  of  the  District  is  organized  under  an  act  of  Congress 
approved  March  1,  1899.  (25  Stats.,  772.)  This  law  requires  that 
every  male  citizen  of  the  District  of  Columbia  of  the  age  of  18  and 
under  the  age  of  45  shall  be  enrolled,  except  municipal  and  judicial 
officers,  officers  and  ex-officers  of  the  United  States  Army  and  Navy, 
officers  who  have  served  for  five  years  in  the  militia  of  the  District  or 
of  any  State  of  the  United  States,  ministers  of  religion,  practicing 
physicians,  railroad  conductors  and  engineers,  policemen,  firemen, 
idiots,  lunatics,  drunkards,  paupers,  and  persons  convicted  of  infamous 
crimes,  except  as  it  may  be  modified  by  the  act  of  Congress  approved 
January  21,  1903,  entitled  "An  act  to  promote  the  efficiency  of  the 
militia,  and  for  other  purposes."  (See  also  act  approved  Feb.  18, 
1909.) 

RELIGION. 

The  first  amendment  to  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States,  which 
provides  that  "Congress  shall  make  no  law  respecting  an  establish- 
ment of  religion  or  prohibiting  the  free  exercise  thereof,"  precludes 
legislation  on  that  subject  in  the  District  of  Columbia,  in  view  of  the 
fact  that  Congress  exercises  exclusive  legislative  authority  at  the  seat 
of  government. 


216  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 

SEAL. 

The  seal  of  the  District  of  Columbia  was  adopted  by  the  act  of  the 
legislative  assembly,  as  follows : 

AN  ACT  adopting  a  seal  for  the  District  of  Columbia. 

Be  it  enacted  by  the  legislative  assembly  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  That  the  following 
design  be,  and  the  same  hereby  is,  adopted  for  the  seal  of  the  District  of  Columbia. 
[Here  follows  design.] 


SEC.  2.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  secretary  of  the  District  shall  have  the 
official  charge  and  custody  of  said  seal. 

SEC.  3.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  use  of  said  design,  as  the  seal  of  the  Dis- 
trict, by  the  executive  department  of  the  District  government  is  hereby  approved 
and  legalized. 

SEC.  4.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  in  view  of  the  emergency  arising  from  the 
necessity  for  and  use  of  the  seal  of  the  District,  this  act  shall  go  into  effect  imme- 
diately upon  its  passage. 

Approved,  August  3,  1871. 

This  act  was  passed  in  pursuance  of  the  authority  granted  to  said 
assembly  by  "an  act  to  provide  a  government  for  the  District  of 
Columbia,"  approved  February  21,  1871  (16  Stats.,  419).  The  office 
of  the  secretary  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  in  whose  custody  the  seal 
was  placed  by  that  act,  was  abolished  by  the  act  of  June  20,  1874,  and 
the  seal  has  since  been  used  by  the  secretary  to  the  Board  of  Com- 
missioners of  the  District  of  Columbia  as  the  representative  of  said 
board.  The  legend  on  the  scroll  on  this  seal  is  "  Justitia  Omnibus;" 
the  date  in  the  wreath,  "1871,"  and  the  word  on  the  book  on  the  arm 
of  the  female  figure  is  "Constitution,"  in  three  lines  of  four  letters 
each. 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 


217 


List  of  the  principal  municipal  authorities  of  the  cities  of  Washington  and  Georgetown  and 

of  the  District  of  Columbia. 


Name. 

Period. 

Name. 

Period. 

COMMISSIONERS     TO      LAY     OUT 
THE  CITY  OF  WASHINGTON. 

Thomas  Johnson,  Maryland 

GOVERNORS     OF     THE     DISTRICT 
AND    EX    OFFICIO    PRESIDENTS 
OF     THE     BOARD     OF     PUBLIC 
WORKS. 

Daniel  Carroll,  Maryland  

Henry  D.  Cooke  

Feb.  28,  1871,  to 

David  Stuart,  Virginia.  .  ,  
Gustavas  Scott,  Maryland  

Sept.  13,  1873. 

Wm.  Thornton,  Pennsylvania.. 

Alexander  White,  Maryland 

William  Cranch,  Maryland. 

DELEGATE  TO  CONGRESS. 

Tristam  Dalton,  Maryland 

Norton  P.  Chipman 

Apr.  21,  1871,  to 

MAYORS  OF  THE  CITY   OF  WASH- 

SECRETARIES. 

Norton  P.  Chipman.         '  .   

Mar.  4,  1875. 
Mar.  2,  1871,  to 

INGTON. 

Edwin  L.  Stanton 

Apr.  21,  1871. 
May  19,  1871,  to 

Robert  Brent  

June,    1802,    to 

Sept.  22,  1873. 

June,  1812. 

Richard  Harrington.. 

Sept.  22,  1873,  to 

Daniel  Rapine  

June,    1812,    to 

June  20,  1874. 

James  II.  Blake 

June,  1813. 
June,    1813,    to 

Henry  D.  Cooke 

While  governor. 

Benjamin  G  Orr 

June,  1817. 
June,    1817,    to 

Alexander  Robey  Shepherd  

Mar.  16,  1871,  to 
Sept.  13,  1873, 

Samuel  N  Smallwood 

June,  1819. 
June,    1819     to 

and  while  gov- 
ernor. 

June,1822,and 
June,  1824,  to 
Sept.  30,  1824 

S.  P.  Brown  
A.  B.  Mullett 

Mar.  16,  1871,    to 
Sept.  13,  1873. 
Mar.  16,  1871,  to 

Thomas  Carberry  

June,    1822,    to 

June  2,  1873. 

June,  1824. 

James  A.  Magruder  

Mar.  16,  1871,  to 

Roger  C.  Weightman  

Oct.  4,  1824,  to 

June  20,  1874. 

July  31,  1827. 

Adolph  Cluss  

Jan.  2,   1873,   to 

Joseph  Gales,  jr.. 

July  31,  1827,  to 

June  20,  1874. 

June,  1830. 

Henry  A.  Willard. 

May  22,  1873,  to 

John  P.  Van  Ness. 

June,    1830,    to 

June  20,  1874. 

June,  1834. 

John  B.  Blake 

Sept.  13,  1873,  to 

William  A.  Bradley 

June,    1834     to 

June  20,  1874. 

Peter  Force 

June,  1836. 
June     1836     to 

BOARD  OF  HEALTH. 

N  S  Lincoln 

Mar    15,  1871,  to 

William  Winston  Seaton  

June,  1840. 
June,    1840,    to 

T.  S.  Verdi 

Mar.  22,  1871. 
Mar.  15,  1871    to 

Walter  Lenox.  . 

June,  1850. 
June,    1850,    to 

H.  A.  Willard 

July  1,  1878. 
Mar.  15,  1871;  de- 

John  W.  Maury 

June,  1852. 
June,    1852     to 

clined     ap- 
pointment. 

June,  1854. 

John  M.  Langston 

Mar.  15,  1871,  to 

John  T.  Towers 

June     1854     to 

Nov.  10,  1877. 

June,  1856. 

John  Marbury,  jr  

Mar.  15,  1871,  to 

William  B.  Magruder 

June     1856     to 

July  1   1878. 

June,  1858. 

D.  Willard  Bliss  

May  23,  1872,  to 

James  G.  Berret 

June     1858     to 

July  1   1878. 

Aug.  24,  1861. 

Robert  B.  Warden 

Nov.  10,  1877,  to 

Richard  Wallach... 

Aug.  26,  1861  to 

July  1,  1878. 

June,  1868 

Christopher  C.  Cox 

Apr.   3,  1871,  to 

Sayles  J.  Bowen  

June,    1868     to 

July  1,  1878. 

Matthew  Gault  Emery 

June,  1870. 
June     1870     to 

COMMISSIONERS  OF  THE  DIS- 
TRICT OF  COLUMBIA 

MAYORS  OF  THE  CITY  OF  GEORGE- 

June, 1871. 

Temporary  government. 
William  Dennison  

Julyl,    1874,    to 

TOWN. 

Henry  T.  Blow.  .. 

July  1,  1878. 
July   1,  1874,   to 

Robert  Peter  

1789  to  1798 

Dec.  31,  1874. 

Llovl  Beall  

1798  to  1803. 

John  11.  Ketcham. 

July   3,  1874,   to 

Daniel  Rentzel  

1803  to  1805,  and 

June  30,  1877. 

1806  to  1808. 

Seth  Ledyard  Phelps 

Jan.  18,  1875,   to 

Thomas  Corcoran  .  

1805  to  1806  and 

June  30  1878. 

David  Wiley  

1808   to    1811, 
and     1812    to 
1813,  and  1818 
to  1819. 
1811  to  1812 

Thomas    B.  Bryan,    succeeded 
Ketcham. 
Capt.  Richard   L.  Hoxie,  engi- 
neer to   the  Board   of  Com- 

Dec.   3,  1877,   to 
July  1,  1878. 
July   2,    1874,  to 
July  1,  1878. 

John  Peter  

1813  to  1818  and 

Henry  Foxhall. 

1821  to  1822. 
1819  to  1821 

the  board. 

John  Cox  

1822  to  1845 

Henry  Addison  .   . 

1845  to  1857  and 

Richard  R.  Crawford.  .  . 

1859  to  1867. 
1857  to  1859 

none    was    ever  elected,    but 

Charles  B.  Welch  
Henry  M.  Sweeney.  .  . 

1867  to  1869. 
1869  to  1871. 

in    that  capacity  at   all   board 
sessions  when  he  was  nresent. 

218 


GOVERNMENT    OF    THP:    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA. 


List  of  the  principal  municipal  authorities  of  the  cities  of  Washington  and  Georgetown  and 
of  the  District  of  Columbia — Continued. 


Name. 

Period. 

Name. 

Period. 

COMMISSIONERS  OF  THE  DISTRICT 

OF  COLUMBIA  —  continued. 
Permanent  form  of  government. 
Josiah  Dent..  .                

Jnlv  1,  1878,  to 

ASSISTANTS  TO    ENGINEER   COM- 
MISSIONERS. 

Permanent  form  of  government  — 
Continued. 

Capt.  R.  L.  Hoxie  

July  21,  1878,  to 

Seth  Ledyard  Phelps  

July  17,  1882. 
July  'l,  1878,  to 

Capt.  F.  V.  Greene... 

Aug.  1,  1884. 
May  2,  1879,  to 

Maj.  WUliam  Johnson  Twining  .. 

Nov.  29,  1879. 
June  29,  1878  to 

Lieut.  C.  McD.  Townsend..  . 

Mar.  3,  1885. 
Aug.  1,  1884,  to 

Thomas  Phillips  Morgan  

May  5,  1882. 
Nov.  '29,  1879,  to  ' 

Capt.  F.  A  .  Marian 

Mar.  6,  1886. 
Mar.  25,  1885,  to 

Maj.  Garrett  J.  Lvdecker  

Mar.  8,  1883. 
May  11,  1882,  to 

Capt.  Eugene  Griffin 

May  27,  1886. 
May  27,  1886,  to 

Joseph  Rodman  West  .            

Apr.  1,  1886. 
July  17,  1882,  to 

Capt.  Thos.  W.  Symons.. 

Mar.  6,  1888. 
June  5,  1886,  to 

James  Barker  Edmonds.  .          

July  22,  1885. 
Mar.  3,  1883,  to 

Capt.  S.  S.  Leach 

Nov.  1,  1889. 
Mar.  6,   1888,  to 

William  Benning  Webb. 

Apr.  1,  188G. 
July  22,  1885,  to 

Capt.  J.  L.  Lusk 

June  2,  1888. 
June  2,  1888,  to 

Samuel  Edwin  Wheat-ley 

May  21,  1889. 
\pr    1,  1880,  to 

Capt  Wm  T   Rossell 

Mar.  1,  1893. 
Nov.  1,  1889,  un- 

Col William  Ludlow 

May  21,  1889. 
Vpril  1,  1886,  to 

til  detailed  as  a 

Maj.  Charles  Walker  Raymond.  .  . 
John  Watkinson  Douglass 

Jan.  27,  1888. 
Jan.  27,  1888,  to 
Feb.  3,  1890. 
May  21   1889  to 

District  of  Co- 
lumbia,     Oct. 
15,  1891. 
Oct    31,  1891    to 

Lemon  Galpin  Hine  

Feb.  28,  1893. 
Mav  21,  1889,  to 

Capt.  George  McC.  Derbv 

May  27,  1896. 
Mar.  1,   1893,  to 

Lieut.      Col.      Henry      Martyn 

Sept.  30,  1890. 
Feb.  14,  1890,  to 

Capt.  Edward  Burr  

Oct.  8,  1894. 
Oct.  9,   1894,   to 

Robert. 
John  Wesley  Ross           .            .   . 

Oct.  14,  1891. 
Oct     1,  1890    to 

Capt.  Lansing  II   Beach 

Apr.  28,  1898. 
Oct  30  1894,  un- 

Capt.  William  Trent  Rossell  
Myron  Melville  Parker 

July  29,  1902. 
Oct.  15,  1891,  to 
May  8,  1893. 
Feb  20   1893  to 

•     til  detailed  as  a 
Commissioner, 
District  of  Co- 
lumbia     June 

Maj.  Charles  Francis  Powell 

Mar.  9,  1894. 
Mav  8,  1893    to 

Capt  William  E  Craighi!! 

1,  1898. 
Feb    28    1899    to 

George  Truesdell 

Mar.  1,  1897. 
Mar  10  1894  to 

Capt   David  Du  B   Gailhr'l 

Sept.  15,  1899. 
July  21    1899    to 

Capt.  William  Murray  Blac'.;  

May  7,  1897. 
Mar.  2,  1897,  to 

Capt.  H.  C.  Newcomer 

Mar.  6,  1901. 
Dec.  27,  1899,  to 

John  Brewer  Wight 

May  31,  1898. 
May  8,  1897    to 

Dec.  23,  1903. 
Apr    16    1901    to 

Henry    Brown    Floyd     Macfar- 

May  8,  1600. 
May  9,  1900. 

Capt.  Jay  J.  Morrow 

Oct.  1,  1906. 
Jan.  4,  1904,  until 

land. 
Capt.  Lansing  Hoskins  Beach  

Col.  John  Biddle.     .. 

June  1,  1898,  to 
Nov.  1,  1901. 
'  Nov.  1,  1901,  to 

sworn      as 
a  Commission- 
er,   District  of 
Columbia, 

Henry  Litchfield  West  

May  1,  1907. 
Oct.  16,  1902. 

Capt.  William  Kelly 

May  2,  1907. 
Sept.  29,  1906. 

Maj.  Jay  J.  Morrow 

May  2   1907   to 

Vug  14  1907 

Maj   Spencer  Cosby 

Dec.  21,  1908. 
Dec  21   1908  to 

SECRETARY  TO  THE  BOARD. 

Mar.  15,  1909. 

William  Tindall.. 

From     July     1  , 

Mai.  William  V.  Judson... 

:  Mar.  15,  1909 

1878. 

GOVERNMENT    OF   THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLUMBIA.  21V) 

ORGANIZATION    OF    BOARDS    OF    COMMISSIONERS    UNDER    ACT   OF   JUNE    11,    1878. 

First  Board. — Seth  Ledyard  Phelps,  nonpartisan,  president;  Josiah  Dent,  Demo- 
crat; Maj.  William  Johnson  Twining.  From  July  1,  1878.  to  November  29,  1879. 

Second  Board. — Josiah  Dent,  president;  Thomas  Phillips  Morgan,  Republican; 
Maj.  William  Johnson  Twining.  From  November  29,  1879,  to  May  13,  1882.  Major 
Twining  died  May  5,  1882. 

Third  Board. — Josiah  Dent,  president;  Thomas  Phillips  Morgan,  Maj.  Garret  J. 
(initial  only)  Lydecker.  From  May  13,  1882,  to  July  17,  1882.  No  reelection  of  the 
president  of  the  Board. 

Fourth  Board. — Joseph  Rodman  West,  Republican,  president;  Thomas  Phillips 
Morgan,  Maj.  Garret  J.  Lydecker.  From  July  17,  1882,  to  March  8,  1883. 

Fifth  Board. — Joseph  Rodman  West,  president  to  March  29,  1883;  James  Barker 
Edmonds,  Democrat;  Maj.  Garret  J.  Lydecker.  James  Barker  Edmonds,  president 
from  March  29,  1883;  Joseph  Rodman  West,  Maj.  Garret  J.  Lydecker.  From  March 
8,  1883,  to  July  22,  1885.  No  reelection  of  president  of  the  Board. 

Sixth  Board. — James  Barker  Edmonds,  president;  William  Benning  Webb,  Repub- 
lican; Maj.  Garret  J.  Lydecker.  From  July  22,  1885,  to  April  1,  1886.  President  of 
the  Board  reelected. 

Seventh  Board. — William  Benning  Webb,  president;  Samuel  Edwin  Wheatley, 
Democrat;  Col.  William  Ludlow.  From  April  1,  1886,  to  January  27,  1888. 

Eighth  Board. — William  Benning  Webb,  president;  Samuel  Edwin  Wheatley,  Maj. 
Charles  Walker.  Raymond.  January  27,  1888,  to  May  21,  1889.  No  reelection  of 
president  of  the  Board. 

Ninth  Board. — John  Watkinson  Douglass,  Republican,  president;  Lemon  Galpin 
Hine,  Democrat;  Maj.  Charles  Walker  Raymond.  From  May  21,  1889,  to  February 
14,  1890. 

Tenth  Board. — John  Watkinson  Douglass,  president;  Lemon  Galpin  Hine,  Lieut. 
Col.  Henry  Martyn  Robert.  From  February  14,  1890,  to  October  1,  1890.  President 
reelected. 

Eleventh  Board. — John  Watkinson  Douglass,  president;  John  Wesley  Ross,  Demo- 
crat; Lieut.  Col.  Henry  Martyn  Robert.  From  October  1,  1890.  to  October  15,  1891. 
No  reelection  of  president  of  the  Board. 

Twelfth  Board. — John  Watkinson  Douglass,  president;  John  Wesley  Ross,  Capt. 
William  Trent  Rossell.  From  October  15,  1891,  to  March  1,  1893.  President  of  the 
Board  reelected. 

Thirteenth  Board. — John  Wesley  Ross,  president;  Myron  Melville  Parker,  Repub- 
lican; Capt.  William  Trent  Rossell.  From  March  1,  1893,  to  May  8,  1893. 

Fourteenth  Board. — John  Wesley  Ross,  president;  Myron  Melville  Parker,  Capt. 
Charles  Francis  Powell.  From  May  8,  1893,  to  March  10,  1894.  No  reelection  of 
president  of  the  Board. 

Fifteenth  Board. — John  Wesley  Ross,  president;  George  Truesdell,  Republican; 
Capt.  Charles  Francis  Powell.  ,  From  March  10,  1894,  to  March  2,  1897.  President 
of  the  Board  reelected. 

Sixteenth  Board. — John  Wesley  Ross,  president;  George  Truesdell,  Capt.  William 
Murray  Black.  From  March  2,  1897,  to  May  8,  1897.  No  reelection  of  president  of 
the  Board. 

Seventeenth  Board. — John  Wesley  Ross,  president;  John  Brewer  Wight,  Republican: 
Capt.  William  Murray  Black.  From  May  8,  1897,  to  June  1,  1898.  The  last  Board 
meeting  at  which  Commissioner  Black  was  present  was  held  on  May  26,  1898.  Capt. 
Lansing  H.  Beach  acted  in  his  stead  from  that  date  until  Juno  1.  1898.  President 
of  the  Board  reelected. 

Eighteenth  Board. — John  Brewer  Wight,  president;  John  Wesloy  Ross,  Capt.  Lan- 
sing Hoskins  Beach.  From  June  1,  1898,  to  May  9,  1900. 


220  GOVERNMENT    OF    THE    DISTRICT    OF    COLOMBIA. 

Nineteenth  Board. — Henry  Brown  Floyd  Macfarland,  Republican,  president;  John 
Wesley  Ross,  Capt.  Lansing  Hoskins  Beach.  From  May  9,  1900,  to  October  31,  1901. 

Twentieth  Board. — Henry  Brown  Floyd  Macfarland,  president;  John  Wesley  Ross, 
Maj.  John  Biddle.  From  November  1,  1901,  to  July  29,  19Q2,  on  which  date  Com- 
missioner Ross  died.  President  of  the  Board  reelected. 

Twenty-first  Board. — Henry  Brown  Floyd  Macfarland,  president;  Henry  Litchfield 
West,  Democrat;  Col.  John  Biddle.  From  October  16,  1902.  President  of  the  Board 
reelected. 

Twenty-second  Board. — Henry  Brown  Floyd  Macfarland,  president;  Henry  Litch- 
field West,  Capt.  Jay  J.  Morrow.  From  May  2,  1907.  President  of  the  Board 
reelected. 

Twenty-third  Board. — Henry  Brown  Floyd  Macfarland,  president  of  the  Board; 
Henry  Litchfield  West,  Maj.  Spencer  Cosby.  From  December  21,  1908. 

Twenty-fourth  Board. — Henry  Brown  Floyd  Macfarland,  president  of  the  Board; 
Henry  Litchfield  West,  Maj.  William  V.  Judson.  From  March  15,  1909.  President 
of  the  Board  reelected. 


INDEX. 


Alexandria  County:  Page. 

Created 14 

Retrocession  of,  to  Virginia 14 

Aliens,  ownership  of  land  in  the  District  by 16 

Alleys  in  the  city  of  Washington 25 

Alleys  and  minor  streets,  opening,  widening  of ,  etc 153 

Area  of  the  city  of  Washington 19 

Area  of  the  District  of  Columbia 5 

Assessments: 

For  cleaning  of  offensive  cesspools 160 

Of  steam  railroads  for  street  lighting,  etc 160 

For  cost  of  erection  of  fire  escapes * 160 

For  removing  snow,  ice,  etc 160 

For  paving  streets  adjacent  to  tracks 160 

Of  personal  property 161 

Of  real  property 144 

For  sidewalks,  sewers,  and  curbing 152, 153 

For  house  connections 152, 157 

For  water  mains 152, 154 

For  removing  dangerous  structures,  etc 158 

For  removal  of  weeds 159 

For -drainage  of  lots 159 

Of  railroad  companies  for  special  policemen  at  crossings 159 

Assessor  and  assistant  assessors: 

Duties  of 144 

Salary  of 1 144 

Appointment  of 144 

Constitute  board  of  review 144 

Public  inspection  of  records  of 147 

Assistants  to  the  Engineer  Commissioner: 

Details  and  duties  of 116, 125, 141 

List  of T 214 

Auditor,  District  of  Columbia,  duties  of,  etc 178 

Avenues  in  the  city  of  Washington,  naming,  width,  etc ' 25 

Bathing  beach '. 204 

Board — 

Of  assistant  assessors. 

Of  personal-tax  appraisers 161 

Of  personal-tax  appeals 162 

Board  of  charities,  appointment  and  duties  of 184 

221 


222  INDEX. 

Board  of  Children's  Guardians:  page. 

Appointment  and  duties  of,  etc 185 

Power  in  re  delinquent  children 186 

Board  of  Commissioners,  organization  of,  etc •. 215 

Board  of  dental  examiners 199 

Board  of  education 182 

Board  of  equalization  and  review: 

How  constituted 144 

Power  and  duties  of 145 

Time  of  meeting 145 

Shall  hear  appeals  from  yearly  assessments 145 

Board  of  health,  list  of  members 214 

Board  of  medical  examiners,  appointment,  term,  duties,  etc- 197 

Board  of  medical  supervisors 198 

Board  of  public  works,  list  of  members 213 

Boilers,  inspection  of 206 

Bond: 

Of  Commissioners 142 

Of  assessor 144 

Of  contractors 180 

Biennial  examination  of  official 181 

Renewal  of  official 181 

Buildings: 

Annual  listing  of,  for  taxation 145 

Damaged  or  destroyed,  assessment  shall  be  reduced 145 

Inspection  of 206 

Number  of  new,  since  1879 206 

Boundaries  of  the  District  of  Columbia 9, 14 

Boundaries  of  Georgetown. . . 26 

Boundary  of  the  city  of  Washington 18 

Carrollsburg 10 

Census  of  the  District  of  Columbia 15 

Certificates  of  taxes  and  assessments 150 

Color,  penal  discrimination  on  account  of,  abolished 16 

Commissioners  appointed  to  lay  out  District 7,  8,  23 

Commissioners  of  the  District  of  Columbia: 

Appointment  of,  tenure  of  office  and  qualifications 141 

Appointment  and  removal  from  office  by 143 

Board  of,  for  transaction  of  business 142 

president  of 1 17, 142 

quorum  of 142 

Boards  of,  list  of 215 

.  Bond  of 142 

Duties  of,  general 143 

subdivision  of 142 

ex  officio 142 

Estimates  of  expenses  for  each  fiscal  year  must  be  submitted  by 143 

List  of 214 

Oath  of,  office  of 142 

Obligations,  shall  not  incur  without  authority  of  Congress 143 

Political  status  of 142 

Salary  and  bond  of 142 


INDEX.  223 

Page. 

Commissioners  of  pharmacy,  appointment  and  duties  of 198 

Congress  of  the  United  States: 

Jurisdiction  of,  over  the  District  of  Columbia  to  be  exclusive (i 

time  of  vesting  of 11 

Meetings  of — 

First  in  the  District  of  Columbia 12 

Previous  places  of i 1 3 

Contracts: 

For  public  works,  etc.,  in  the  District  of  < 'ohnnbia 122, 180 

Coroner,  duties,  etc 209 

Counties,  division  of  the  District  into '. 14 

Courts  of  the  District  of  Columbia 209 

Dangerous  structures,  removing  of 159 

Delegate  to  Congress 29,  213 

Dental  examiners 199 

Departments  of  General  Government,  transfer  of,  to  the  District  of  Columbia. . .  12 

Disbursements  of  moneys  of  the  District  of  Columbia 121,  J  78 

District  of  Columbia: 

Authority  for  the  establishment  of 6 

Boundary  lines  of 9 

Census  of 15 

Cession  of  land  by  Virginia  and  Maryland  for : 8 

Commission  appointed  to  lay  out 7 

Congress  to  exercise  exclusive  jurisdiction  over f> 

Divided  into  counties 14 

Governor  of,  appointment  of 29 

House  of  delegates  created  for 29 

Incorporating  of 29 

Location  and  topography  of 5 

Map  of 9 

Municipal  government  of,  first  established 29 

as  first  established,  abolished 29 

present  form  established 29 

Naming  of .• T 11 

Officials  of 214 

Organic  law  of 115 

Part  ceded  by  Virginia  retroceded 14 

Present  form  of  government  for 29, 141 

President's  arrival  in 12 

Seat  of  government  of  the  United  States  to  be  in 6 

Site  of,  accepted 10 

Sites,  first  selected  for 7 

Slavery,  abolition  of,  in 15 

Towns  within  boundaries  of,  at  time  of  cession 10 

Drainage  of  lots,  assessment  for 159 

Electrical  department 20J 

Engineer  Commissioner: 

Detail  and  duties  of 116, 141 

Detail  and  qualifications  of  assistants  to 116, 141 

Assistants  to 116, 141, 214 

Estimates  for  the  support  of  the  government  shall  lie  submitted  by  Commis- 
sioners   143 

Excise  board 178 

74986—09 15 


224  INDEX. 

Exemptions —  Page. 

Of  real  property  from  taxation 147 

special  assessments 151 

Of  personal  property 164 

Expitures  (see  disbursements). 

Fees  and  licenses,  list  of 168 

Fenwick  map  of  the  city  of  Georgetown 26 

Fire  department: 

Personnel,  qualifications,  etc 195 

Firemen's  relief  fund 195 

Fire  escapes,  assessment  for,  if  owners,  etc.,  fail  to  build 160 

Firewood,  inspector  of 207 

Fiscal  year,  beginning  of 179 

Flour,  inspection  of 207 

Form  of  government  (present)  for  the  District  of  Columbia 141 

Garbage,  etc.,  disposal  of 200 

Gas  and  meters,  inspection  of ." 207 

Georgetown: 

Additions  to 27 

Boundaries  of 26 

Charter  of,  revoked 27 

Consolidation  of,  with  Washington 27 

Establishment,  naming,  and  early  history 26 

"  Fenwick  map  "of 26 

Incorporation  of 26 

Officials  of,  how  chosen 28 

Streets  of,  course  of 27 

renaming  directed 27 

title  to 27 

width  of 27 

Governor  of  the  District  of  Columbia: 

Appointed 29 

Office  of,  abolished 29 

Governors  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  list  of 213 

Hamburg 10 

Harbor  lines 204 

Harbor  master 204 

Hay  scales 209 

Health  department,  duties,  etc.,  of  health  officer 196 

Highways: 

Declared  to  be  post  routes 25 

See  also  Streets  and  avenues. 

House  connections,  with  water  mains,  sewers,  etc.,  assessment  for 152 

House  of  delegates  established  for  the  District  of  Columbia 29 

House  of  detention 193 

Industrial  Home  School 183 

Insane,  care,  treatment,  or  transportation  of 190 

Interest,  legal  rate  of 215 

Jail 190 

Judiciary  of  the  District  of  Columbia 209 

Juvenile  court 211 

La\vs  in  force  in  the  District  of  Columbia 211 

L'Enfant,  Maj.  Pierre  Charles 20 

Levy  court: 

Appointed  by  the  President 28 

Abolished 29 

City  of  Washington  to  be  represented  in  membership  of 28 


INDEX.  225 

Levy  Court — Continued.  p 

Jurisdiction  of,  in  the  District  of  Columbia 28 

Membership  of,  reduced 29 

Number  of  members  and  their  assignments 28 

Library,  Public ^34 

Licenses  and  fees,  list  of igg 

Lighting  of  streets,  etc 201 

Lighting  tracks  of  steam  railroad  companies 160 

Lots  in  the  city  of  Washington : 

Bought  by  the  United  States 22 

Donated  to  the  United  States , 22 

Lumber,  inspection  of 208 

Markets: 

Monthly  rates  for  stalls 171 

Receipts,  etc •_  209 

Map  of  the  District  of  Columbia 9 

Maryland,  cession  of  land  for  site  of  District  by g 

Mayors: 

Of  Georgetown,  list  of 213 

Of  Washington,  list  of  213 

Mayors  of  the  city  of  Washington: 

Appointed  by  the  President 23 

Elected  by  the  people  and  city  council . 24 

Medical  examiners 197 

Medical  supervisors igg 

Method  of  taxation  in  the  District  of  Columbia 143 

Militia  of  the  District  of  Columbia 215 

Minor  streets  and  alleys,  opening,  widening,  etc. ,  of 153 

Municipal  corporation,  District  of  Columbia  created 29 

Municipal  court 212 

Municipal  government  of  the  District  of  Columbia: 

First  established 29 

Abolished 29 

Officials  of 29 

Present  form,  establishment  of 29 

Naming  the  District  of  Columbia 11 

Parks  and  parking 205 

Pavements,  character  of,  miles  and  square  yards  of 202 

Personal  property: 

Taxation  of 161 

Subject  to  taxation,  schedule  of 161 

Schedule  of,  must  be  advertised 161 

Appeal  from  appraisement 162 

Time  of  payment  of  tax  for 147 

Exemptions  of,  from  taxation 164 

Penalty  for  violation  of  personal-tax  law 164 

Plumbing: 

Inspection  of 208 

Board  of 208 

Police  department: 

Personnel,  etc 191 

Qualifications  of  applicants  for  appointment  in 191 

Special  and  additional  police 192 

Removal  of  policemen 193 


226  INDEX. 

Police  department — Continued.  page. 

Patrol  and  ambulance  system 193 

Surgeons  of 193 

Pension  fund 194 

Policemen,  special,  at  crossings,  railroad  companies  to  pay  salary  of 159 

Post  routes,  highways  declared  to  be 25 

Potomac  River,  lower  falls  on,  as  site  for  Federal  town 7 

President  of  the  United  States,  an  official  of  the  city  of  Washington 23 

Proposals: 

For  municipal  works 179 

For  material,  supplies,  etc 179 

Public  buildings,  officer  in  charge  of,  an  official  of  the  city  of  Washington 23 

Public  library 184 

Public  schools „ 182 

Public  works,  proposals  for 179 

Railroad  companies: 

Steam,  to  pay  cost  for  lighting  streets,  etc.,  along  tracks 160 

Street,  assessed  for  paving  adjacent  to  tracks 160 

length  of  track,  etc 202 

Rate  of  taxation: 

On  personal  property . .  146, 163 

On  real  property 146 

Real  property: 

Assessed  value  of,  for  1907 178 

Assessment  of 144 

appeal  from 145 

Reassessment  of,  when  subdivided 146 

Bought  at  tax  sale  for  District  of  Columbia 149 

Designations  of  parcels  of 151 

Exemptions  of 147 

Listing  of,  annually 145 

Reassessment  of  taxes  which  have  been  declared  void 150 

Records  of  assessor,  public  inspection  of 147 

Reform  schools 189 

Religion 215 

Retents  from  contractors 181 

Revenue: 

Of  the  District  of  Columbia,  sources  of 143 

Collection  and  deposit  of 150 

Schools,  Public: 

Board  of  education  has  control  of 182 

Number  of  pupils  and  teachers  in 183 

Seal  of  District  of  Columbia 215 

Sealer  of  weights  and  measures: 

Fees  for  testing,  sealing,  etc 177 

Duties,  etc 206 

Seat  of  government: 

District  of  Columbia  established  as 6 

Temporary  removal  of,  authorized- 

Secretaries  of  the  District  of  Columbia 213 


INDEX.  227 

Page. 

Sewers,  service 152 

Sewer  system 203 

Sinking  fund 179 

Slavery,  abolition  of,  in  the  District  of  Columbia 15 

Snow,  ice,  dirt,  etc.,  assessment  for  removing  of 160 

Statute  of  limitations  in  District  of  Columbia 214 

Steam  engineers 204 

Streets  in  the  city  of  Washington : 

Naming  of,  width  of,  etc 24 

-     Title  to 21 

Streets  and  avenues : 

Extensions  of 153 

Lighting  of 201 

Character  of  pavements  of 202 

Street  cleaning 199 

Street  railways  in  District  of  Columbia 202 

Length  of  track  of  each 202 

Suffrage 17 

Supplies  for  District  of  Columbia 207 

Surveyor,  District  of  Columbia : 

Appointment  and  duties  of 203 

Fees,  etc 172 

Taxation  in  the  District  of  Columbia: 

Methods  of 143 

Rate  of,  on  real  property 146 

Of  personal  property 1 46,  163 

Taxes: 

Bills  for,  shall  be  prepared  by  assessor 146 

Date  of  payment  of 147 

Sales  for  delinquent 147,  148 

In  arrears,  publication  of  list  of 147 

Certificate  of  sale  for 148 

Deed,  issue  of,  to  owners  of  certificate  of  sale  for 148 

Canceling  invalid  sales  for ^ 148 

Redemption  of  property  sold  for 149 

Surplus  from  sales  for 149 

Property  bid  in  by  District  of  Columbia,  at  sales  for 149 

List  of  property  sold  for,  to  be  open  to  public  inspection 150 

Certificates  of 150 

Declared  void,  reassessment  of  property  for 150 

On  personal  property,  etc 161 

time  of  payment 147 

Distraint  sale  for  personal 163 

Rate  of,  on  personal  property 163 

Tax  sales.     (See  Taxes.) 

Transcripts  of  deeds,  wills,  etc 151 

Towns  within  boundary  of  District  of  Columbia  at  time  of  cession 10 

Virginia: 

Cession  of  land  for  site  for  District  by 8 

Retrocession  of  land  to 14 

Voting  in  the  District  of  Columbia 17 

Washington  Asylum 190 


228  INDEX. 

Washington  City:  Page. 

Acreage  of 22 

Avenues  in,  naming,  width,  etc 25 

Agreement  of  proprietors  to  convey  land  for 19 

Alleys  in,  original 25 

Area  of 19 

Boundaries  of  lands  of  the  original  proprietors  of 20 

Boundaries  of 18 

Charter  of,  revoked 29 

Distribution  of  lots  among  original  owners 21 

Donation  of  lots  in,  to  the  United  States 22 

First  charter  of 23 

Form  of  conveyance  of  land  for 19, 91 

Georgetown  consolidated  with 27 

Location  of 17 

Mayors  of,  elected  and  appointed 23 

Naming  of 2 

Officials  of,  first 23 

Plan  of 20 

Represented  in  membership  of  levy  court 28 

Required  to  contribute  to  expense  of  levy  court 28 

Streets  in,  naming  of,  width  of 24 

Title  to  streets  in 21 

Title  of  the  United  States  in  streets  confirmed  by  the  Supreme  Court 21 

Washington  County,  creation  of 14 

WTater  mains,  assessment  for,  shall  be  uniform 152, 154 

Wrater  rent,  schedule  of 173 

Water  supply 202 

Weeds,  assessment  for  removal  of 159 

Weights  and  measures,  fees  for  testing,  sealing,  etc 177 

Wharf  property  and  harbor  lines 204 

Wills,  transcript  of,  for  assessment  purposes 151 

Wood,  inspection  and  measurement  of  firewood 207 

Workhouse 190 

o 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 
BERKELEY 

Return  to  desk  from  which  borrowed. 
This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


JAN    22  1948 


REC'D  LD 

NOV    51962 

SENT  ON  ILL 

FEB  1  0  1999 

U.  C.  BERKELEY 


LD  21-100rn-9,'47(A5702sl6)476 


YC  09693 


1909 


I  881 20 


